Forging our own destinies
by Andy Wong Fey Hong
Summary: Ranma leaves Nerima after the failed wedding but not before talking to Akane and Kasumi. When he returns two years later, he looks 10 years older and there's a beautiful woman following him calling him .... Captain? And Kasumi's kindness pays off as a han
1. Prologue: The First Step

**Forging our own destinies.**

Summary: After the wedding, Ranma has had enough. The wedding had dashed his one chance to marry Akane and also the chance to cure his curse. He confides with Akane, having a talk that they should have had the moment they knew about the engagement. And then he leaves. To forge his own destiny.

Author's notes: Hi everyone. This is my first fan fiction so I hope you'll go easy on me. Nevertheless, any comments is welcome.

First warning is that this is a Ranma and Akane match up. I know there are many who hate Akane and portray her very badly but seriously some of her portrayals are really over the board, like she is completely sadistic or is perverted. Anyway, this is also to give a chance to delve into Ranma's psyche which is rarely shown in anime.

Second: There are possible crossover in future, and I'm sorry to say not all of them are anime related. I do intend to keep the crossover interactions at a minimum so as to less confusion to readers who may not be familiar with the various crossover storylines. But to summaries, future plans include the following:

Bleach, Star Wars, Babylon 5, Gundam Seed and strangely enough, the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Again, I'll try to keep everything in Nerima.

Chapter 1: The First Step.

It was late at night at the Tendo residence. All the "Guests" had left, either curtesy of Ranma's fist, Akane's mallet or a few well placed words from the Ice Queen of Nerima who whispered tales of their misconducts which even they, the Nerima Wrecking Crew, would not want publicly known. The dojo was in shambles and during that midnight hour, Tendo Kasumi was cleaning up the rubbish that was left behind. And instead of her all encompassing smile and aura of calmness and happiness, it was replaced by one of sadness and she was in tears as she picked up the rubbish.

Later two persons walked into the dojo, determined to help Kasumi clean up seeing the fathers were of no use, even going out to wail the wedding's failure. Tendo Akane and Saotome Ranma looked at each other. Rather than his usual arrogant demeanor and general idiocy that he usually displayed, this time it was tempered by depression, shame and sadness. Kasumi looked at them and smiled a little when the two started to help clean up the dojo.

When the dojo was finally clean, it was 3 am in the morning. The three had still not said anything to each other. Then the first step began.

"Akane, Kasumi, I'm leaving."

The two sister's head jerked up in shock as they looked at Ranma.

"Please, I know I ain't good in words so please, I beg of you, please be quiet or I will still leave without you all knowing why."

"Ranma, let us go to my room. I'm very sure Nabiki hasn't bugged it or otherwise have it under surveillance," Kasumi said, shocking both Ranma and Akane who had always considered her oblivious to Nabiki's schemes or even the general chaos that dominated Nerima.

Two minutes later, the three were sitting on the floor in Kasumi's room.

"First of all, I'm glad that I met you all, especially you Akane. A lot of things happened but in the end, you still cared for me when it really counted. I'll never forget your help when I dueled Kodachi, or when Cologne stuck me in girl's form with the Cat Tongue technique, or the duel with the ice-skating duo. And in spite your horrible cooking skills, you still tried to improve, and you did. The last curry you made was out of this world, and I mean it in a good way."

Akane blushed wanted to say something, for once her fiery temper missed the earlier comment about her cooking. "Ranma…"

Ranma held up his hand. "I'm not finished. As I said, not once did I regret having my girly ass dragged into the Tendo Dojo. And in the last 1 ½ years that I've known, I've grown extremely fond of you."

He took a deep breath. "Tendo Akane, I loved you a long time now."

Kasumi put her hands to her mouth to suppress her growing mirth, even though she hadn't forgotten what he said about leaving. _After all this time, he's finally able to say it_.

Akane's eyes widened then she began to tear up. "then why are you leaving? Why couldn't you leave well enough alone and gone after the Nyanichaun bottle **AFTER **we were married? Why did you have to screw things up again?" she cried out.

And to both sister's shock, Ranma's eyes also began to tear up. "I just wanted you to be married to a normal man. Not a freak like I currently am."

The great Saotome Ranma, possibly the grand master of Anything Goes Martial Arts, Slayer of the Phoenix Demi-God Saffron and chaos bringer, then broke down crying. Akane moved to Ranma and did something she had never done before: she sat beside him and pulled him towards her, enveloping him in a hug. Ranma's head went down to her knees and continued crying there while Akane stroked his hair.

Through the sobs, she heard, "but I realize now that it wouldn't have mattered. Cursed or not, you would have accepted me. You already did a long time ago but this damn curse seemed, along with my pops, seemed to have robbed me of every chance for me to just show affection to you. I so wanted to walk up to mother and introduce you as my girlfriend but the damn contract interfered. And since then, everything snowballed into chaos."

He lifted his head and straightened himself in front of Akane. "Akane, I need to go on a training trip. Not to find a cure but to find myself. I know I love you, that much I'm certain. But personally, this whole being the greatest in martial arts thing is wearing me down. I still love martial arts and it'll forever be an integral part of my life. But if all martial arts will bring me is chaos and the inability to live a happy life, then I will gladly give it up for something better."

"This journey will be to find that something better or to see if I can use martial arts for something other than senseless fighting and duels. I've got some money stashed away for sometime known and I will use it to travel around Japan, or abroad if necessary. I may not be a freak but I'm far to immature for a great responsibility like marriage. And I certainly don't want you to be married to a ronin, jobless and an overall jackass."

The comment caused both sister to smile a little. They had a feeling that they wouldn't be smiling very soon so best to savor any now.

"All I want now, is to hear what you think of me, and whether you will accept my journey. I'm not asking you to wait for me, in fact, if you meet person who is better than me, please go after him, just don't mallet him too much. Not everyone is as tough as me."

All eyes were on Akane now. The girl wiped her own tears from her eyes and looked into Ranma's. "I…. probably should be very mad now. I mean, you confessed your love and then you say your leaving. Whatever your reasoning, to a girl this is the worst kind of confession to make."

Ranma looked down on the floor and both sisters could practically feel the depression oozing from him. Kasumi wanted to say something to both admonish Akane and placate Ranma when the Ranma's head jerked up as Akane said her next words.

"But I love you too so I guess I'll forgive you sooner or later. Better make it now."

Ranma then did something that made Kasumi's heart sing: he bent forward and kissed Akane. Akane's eyes widened at Ranma's boldness but her eyes closed as the two enjoyed a slow kiss that made Kasumi feel envious.

They broke the kiss about 2 minutes later. "Akane, will you accept my journey to find myself? Will you let me go find my happiness?"

"Baka, as if I could stop you from leaving even if I wanted to."

Kasumi wanted to slap her head. An insult right after a kiss was NOT a good thing to do.

"If you can, come back to me. If its alright with you, I will wait for you," she finished quietly.

Ranma's hands reached forward and held both Akane's hands. "So is this an engagement proposal?" he asked.

"Yes," Akane whispered.

"Just wait a minute." Ranma quietly sneaked out of the room and returned with a small package. He unwrapped the package and it revealed a ring box. He knelt down like some of the gaijin movies the two sisters had seen and proposed to Akane.

"Tendo Akane, would you consent to be my innazuke?" he asked as he opened the box to reveal a simple diamond ring, not very extravagant or valuable but it was a ring nonetheless and diamond was diamond.

The implication of this question was clear. He wanted to make his own decision this time. And to hell with the family honours which had done nothing but wreck their lives.

Without further ado, Akane leaped into Ranma's arms, hugging him and whispering, "yes" in his ear.

Kasumi again, was wondering why she was even here when the exchange so far had been between Akane and Ranma. Then to her surprise, Ranma pulled her into Akane's hug and for the first time, Ranma was hugging another girl in front of Akane and not getting malleted for it.

"Kasumi nee-chan, I wanted you to be the only witness for this. And to know that all your patience and work has paid off. You were the only one who stood firmly by our side when things got rough and frankly, its time you got some happiness to."

For an hour the three talked to each other of their hopes and dreams. Ranma revealed that he always had a fascination of healing bodies instead of always breaking them. He wondered if he could apprenticed himself to clinic doctors as he traveled the country so as to learn more about medicine. At the same time, he had a heard of a few martial arts clans in Okinawa that he also wished to be apprenticed to. Akane honestly did not know what she wanted but it definitely involved more than just being a housewife. She wanted to go to college, possibly even Tokyo university and find her path in life.

Kasumi surprisingly, also shared Ranma's curiosity about medicine. But ever since the death of her mother, she had taken it upon herself to looking after the family although her mother hadn't actually said those words to her before she died, in fact like all her family, her mother's message for them was to be happy. She cried as she recalled her mother's words and also the fact she had almost wasted her youth as the continous maid of the house.

"No offence Oneechan, but I think you should continue your dream. I even heard they offer night courses for that sort of thing. Later today, we'll start looking alright? I need to look at several college applications myself," Akane said.

"And if your dad or my dad tries to stop you from living your own life, I swear when I get back, they'll have me to answer to," Ranma swore.

She cried louder and continued to hug both Ranma and Akane. "Ranma, Akane please go and forge your own destinies. And I will as well." She looked at her watch, it showed nearly seven AM. "Oh my, Ranma you better leave soon. Your father will be waking up soon and I think its best we leave him out of the equation."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

10 minutes later, all three were standing outside the Tendo dojo. But instead of his usual Chinese pants and shirts with a humungous backpack, Ranma sported a long trenchcoat and a large suit case. He also sported dark sunglasses and a hat. They decided to change Ranma's look to minimize immediate recognition. Also, there was something in front of the house that Ranma had never used before in his life.

A cab.

After putting his suitcase into the cab, Ranma turned to look at the two girls. Kasumi had her serene smile again, and this time it was sincere. It was as though she was certain that this wouldn't be the last time they saw one another. Akane's eyes though, were full of tears. The two embraced each other for awhile.

"Come back to me Ranma," she whispered.

"Wait for me Akane. On what little honour I have left, I love you and will do my best to come back."

"Baka, you sound like your going to a war or something."

"I might be, depending on my path. But know that everything I do, will be for our future and happiness."

The two separated from each other and Ranma went into the cab. Ranma asked the cab to drive off first then spent the last few seconds waving at Akane and Kasumi.

"So where to now son? Ain't everyday I see a young man leaving a girlfriend behind," the cab driver said.

Ranma took one last look at the rear window before the tiny specks that was Akane and Kasumi disappeared entirely. Then he gave 10,000 yen to the cab driver.

"Your choice Oji-san. As long as its away from Nerima."

To be continued.

If you've read this far, I thank you for your time and welcome you comments.

Well, here it is, my first fan fiction. My next chapter will be when Ranma comes back. But what in the world happened to him? That's something that will be revealed bit by bit as I don't want to dwell to much on crossovers and alienate the rest of Ranma fans.

To give a sneak peek, when Ranma returns, chronologically he is 25 years old (as of the anime, I believe he is 17 at the time of the failed wedding. But to Akane and Kasumi, he's been gone only two years.

Oh, and I'm hooking up Kasumi with my own character. Bout time that Angel of Nerima deserved a good man and a little love.


	2. Chapter 1: Return to Nerima

**Forging our own destinies.**

Thank you for you reviews everyone. I'm glad to see your comments and that you approve of my writing. More is to come that I promise you. I know that after all the beating Ranma's taken, it seems unlikely they would be engaged after the failed wedding but in my humble opinion, the two love each other and after the failed wedding, the calm that always follows a storm, both sides have finally a chance to think clearly. And Ranma seized the chance immediately.

Also, my own character is introduced this chapter. And Ranma returns to Nerima with some friends.

**Chapter 1: Return to Nerima.**

Late at night in the Tendo home, Kasumi stood at her table studying a huge textbook on cardiology. Actually, it was 9pm and it was normally around this time she finished all of her chores and could finally start her studying. Her classes at the Nerima district college were held 5 times a week, which meant that she had only two nights to do all of her homework and studying while daytime was often devoted to housework.

She turned her eyes away from the book and massaged her temple. She thought that the housework would decrease when Ranma left but unfortunately, this was not to be. Because Genma was still leaving under their roof, freeloading of the Tendos and he had the bright idea of adopting Ryoga Hibiki as his heir when Ranma left. And Ryoga immediately renounced his family name if it meant getting close to Akane. She shook her head and actually cursed Ryoga for his obsession with Akane. The boy was literally a pig, not cleaning up the messes he left from his sparing, mostly because he couldn't find the way from the bathroom to the dojo. And everyday Kasumi grew more worried about whether he would retrain himself from Akane's resolve to wait for Ranma.

It had been two years since Nerima's resident aquatransexual left the ward. She remembered the day like it was yesterday, for it had truly been one of the most wonderful and meaningful days of her life. But the aftermath was not pretty when Genma and her father had found out.

_**Flashback**_

_"HE WHAT?!?!?!?" Her father, Genma and even Nabiki shed her ice-queen expression to show astonishment._

_Akane and Kasumi sighed. "I don't think we need to repeat it. You all heard us perfectly well."_

_"This is a disaster. We've got to find him and bring him back. Oh that ungrateful and utterly honourless son of mine, how dare you throw away our family honour like that and run away leaving your fiancée all alone!" Genma wailed._

_"Waaaah, the schools will never be joined now! The Tendo Anything goes martial arts style will be extinct with no heir to the dojo!" Soun cried._

_Nabiki had her ice-queen expression back. Inside she was thinking, **So he finally snapped. I guess I should have seen it coming. There's only so much of this chaos anybody can take. But something doesn't feel right. Why is Akane and Kasumi telling us? How did they know before I did? **_

_"We must find them. I'll inform Cologne immediately. She's got the money to track him down. Oh he is so going to get it when we get out hands on him. Won't we Akane?" Genma looked expectantly at Akane, completely oblivious to the fact that it was Akane who broke the news to them and that she was perfectly calm._

_"No we won't. And if I hear of any attempt to track down Ranma, you can all face Akane's cooking forevermore. At least that's one part of the housework I won't have to put up with," Kasumi snapped, something that was so alien that the other 3 members of the household couldn't believe their eyes and ears._

_Akane said, "Ranma made his decision and he had the decency of informing me, with Kasumi as our witness. He made his choice and I accepted him and let him go. And just so you know, as of this morning, I am officially his innazuke."_

_"What do you mean pumpkin? Of course you are his innazuke!" Soun cried._

_"No, I wasn't. It was just something you both forced on us. Hell, we didn't even go through the engagement ceremony which requires the exchange of gifts. You tried to enslave us into a wedding. It failed. All your efforts have come to naught, which is why we started anew our engagement this morning. But first Ranma will go on a trip to self discovery so as to learn new things as well as to unlearn many things his father taught to him."_

_"Grr, what can that boy possibly learn without me? He wouldn't last a week without me! Oh the shame…" Genma backed into the wall as he suddenly saw a very scary Akane and Kasumi in front of him._

_"One more word, and I'll cook something that is NOT my curry for dinner not only today but for the rest of your stay in our house!" Akane growled._

_**End flashback**_

On the whole, it ended better that she thought. The threat of Akane's cooking was enough to subdue even Nabiki. Nabiki fortunately, did not pursue the subject of Ranma's whereabouts, especially afterwards when she listened calmly to Akane and Kasumi's personal account of what happened. After the explanation, she walked over to her studio and pulled out a thick slab of documents. It held all of Kasumi's academic records as well as a filled out form for night classes in Nerima's local college.

"Just sign and I'll get it filed in today and you can start classes next week," the ice queen had said. And she said no more on the matter. In fact for two years, she had not mentioned Ranma once.

Kasumi shook her head and wished her sister wasn't so hard to read. She did find out that she bore Ranma no ill-will but she never found out whether the pig tailed boy meant anything to her.

She stood up and went to the kitchen for a cup of tea. Akane was in cram school studying for her Tokyo University ("TU") tests. She was actually a two year ronin, having failed her first time to enter TU. Fortunately she did not give up and it was not like Genma or Soun cared or did anything to hinder her. Kasumi was about to make herself a cup of tea when she noticed a box of chocolate ice cream in the fridge, which had not been closed properly and left ajar.

'_Ice cream, what does this remind me off,' _Kasumi thought.

_**Flashback**_

_It had been three months after the death of Kimiko Tendo. Kasumi was only twelve years old and had gone to her mother's grave to talk with her. After a tearful conversation in which Kasumi confided with her mother, she walked away from the graveyard, none the wiser on what her role would be._

_She did her usual shopping at the market and took a short cut through the park. The sight of her friends and others her own age were happily playing instead of doing household chores was a stab in the heart. It did not occur to her to question why her father was not doing anything to support the family. All that mattered was that her mother was dead and she took it upon herself to step into her mother's shoes. Just as tears were about to come to her eyes, she heard something else: crying. But goodness, wasn't it a man's voice?_

_She walked onward and found a strange sight. A huge man, a giant in fact of man, openly crying in public. Most of the passerby's stayed away from him while a few teenagers jeered at the man but he did not notice. His face was in his hands and he wore a black trenchcoat and had a large duffel bag with him._

_Kasumi felt a twinge of pity for that man. Whatever was troubling him was enough to make him cry enough in public. Perhaps he had lost his mother as well?_

_She walked up to him, put her shopping bags down and took out a handkerchief from her pocket. Then she tugged at the man's coat, which caused the man to lift his face from his hands. Somehow she instantly knew that the man wasn't Japanese. His eyes weren't as slant or small like most Japanese and no Japanese was as tall as him either. Kasumi thought he looked like a Chinese but she couldn't be sure. He was sitting down on a bench and yet he looked 4 feet tall already. _

_"Anou, ojisama? Are you alright?" she said while holding out her handkerchief._

_He looked at the handkerchief as though it was completely alien to him and then slowly took the cloth and wiped his eyes. "Thank you little girl for your kindness. I was sad, I am still sad but you have brightened my day for now." He stood up and then Kasumi got a really good idea of how tall he was: 7 feet in fact. He faced Kasumi and bowed down deeply until half his body was bent and then only, his head was level with Kasumi._

_"Ojisama, please don't do it. I'm only a little girl and its not right for you to bow to me," Kasumi hurriedly said while returning the bow._

_"Please allow me to do at least this. Kindness and compassion is a very rare commodity these days. Those who receive it are lucky indeed and today, I'm one such lucky person." He looked into Kasumi's eyes so intently that Kasumi blushed and tried to look away. "I see I'm not the only one crying today," he said quietly._

_The two looked into each other's eyes for a minute. It was as though each understood the other's sorrow even though they had not mentioned it yet. Brown eyes peered into deep black ones and into the depths of each other's soul. For Kasumi, his eyes were a bottomless pit, terribly deep ones that she was sure shouldn't belong to such a young man who looked like he was in his mid-twenties. They were also simple and beautiful, which matched the man's features. He looked a great deal like the Hong Kong singer Andy Lau she realized but far far far more mature looking, as though he had already lived 50 years despite being 25 years old. She had no idea how close to the truth she was._

_The man then turned and picked up Kasumi's shopping bag. "Miss, please allow me to carry this for you. And let me get you an ice cream as well. I think I'll need one as well."_

_Kasumi's eyes lit up when she heard ice-cream and she nodded eagerly, her sadness momentarily put aside. Although he was a stranger, the depths of his eyes convinced her that he was not a pervert or a bad person. She walked beside the Chinese man who walked to a nearby ice-cream vendor and bought her a double chocolate and strawberry cone. For himself he took a simple vanilla. The two walked to the Tendo dojo, not once asking about each other's sadness, as though they already understood it and didn't need to say anymore. Instead Kasumi talked about her school work, her sisters, as well as her brief training in the Tendo style of martial arts. The man introduced himself as Andy Wong Fey Hong, which confirmed her earlier guess. He said he was a traveler looking for a purpose in life._

_"Gambatte ne, Wong ji san. I'm sure we'll all find it sooner or later," she said smilingly._

_"Indeed we will Kasumi. I just forgot about it today. Depressions is a dangerous thing, one can be consumed by too much of it. That is why its important to have friends and family or failing that, God. And I must give thanks for meeting you today."_

_The two reached the Tendo dojo, where Kasumi opened the door and the man handed put down her packages. "Thank you again for your kindness Kasumi. I won't forget your kindness. Can I call you a friend?" he asked while holding up his hand._

_Kasumi looked at the hand then remembered the American movies she sometimes watched where instead of bowing, they shook hands in greeting. She shyly took the man's monstrous hand and it gently enveloped her small ones and shook it gently. "The ice-cream was delicious. Mayhaps next time, I'll be the one who buys you one."_

_The man laughed. "I'll be sure that I have no money then and be in Shibuya when I meet you, where the ice creams cost US$10 a scoop."_

_Kasumi giggled. "It'll be my pleasure then."_

_The two people looked into each other's eyes again and then the man turned and returned to whence he came._

**End flashback**

_He never gave me back my handkerchief. _Kasumi thought of suddenly. Oh well, it was a new one anyway and he needed it as much as I did. The ice-cream box beckoned to her and she found herself taking a scoop and putting it into a small bowl. A few minutes later, Akane came down to find her sister serenely eating her ice-cream at the kitchen table.

"Hello onechan. Pigging out?" she asked slyly.

"Well, according my BMI calculations, I'm actually underweight you know, so I can afford it."

"Whatever you say onechan," Akane said as she made for herself a cup of coffee. The two sisters sat in the kitchen for a long time, one eating and one drinking.

"Is Ryoga keeping to himself?" Kasumi asked.

"Yeah, barely. I think he's afraid of P Chan though, I've never seen him come anywhere near P Chan.

Kasumi mentally shook her head. That Ryoga came to beg her not to tell Akane did not matter to her but Ranma had also asked her previously to keep her silence. For some reason, Ranma still considered Ryoga a friend.

"Just make sure it stays that way. I don't want anything to happen to you and that guy is just plain stalking you."

Akane sighed. "I know but what can we do? Dad's still the head of the family and its his business who stays in the house. And since he took in Genma, it means taking Ryoga the moment Ryoga took the Saotome name. We can't kick him out of the house. At least Nabiki knows something about him that's keeping him in check."

Nabiki of course knew all about Ryoga but her silence was being bought with Ryoga's pocket money while Kasumi's was bought by honour.

"I wish Ranma would come back. I hope he is doing well," Akane said melancholy.

"Me too," Kasumi concurred.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

In the far side of the moon, well beyond the range of Earth's satellites, a disturbance in space happened. It was as though the fabric of space was ripped apart, revealing a blue hole into another universe altogether. Out of that whole came a ship, dagger shape the length of 1.6 kilometers and colored completely black. The ship discharged a smaller ship, and then both ship suddenly disappeared from view, becoming completely invisible.

Inside the small ship, were at least 7 people. 6 of them were wearing white coats that had the Chinese numbers from 1 to 6. The only one wasn't wearing a white coat was the pilot, a beautiful woman who looked like a Northern Indian, dark skin and with features that were decidedly exotic.

"So this is where you came from Taichou," the woman said.

A white coat with the number 4 sat in the co-pilot seat. "Yes lieutenant. Planet Earth, Japan, Nerima. Set course for the sea of Japan. We can hide our ship there and make it to Nerima on foot."

"So this is where the great Saotome Ranma comes from," a woman with the number 3 on her coat commented. "I must admit considering your skills, I expected you to come from a much harsher world."

Ranma sighed. "If it wasn't so harsh, I wouldn't be here. I would be married by now, running my own dojo, not fighting a war that was not mine for the past 10 years."

Number 3 white coat eased herself behind the co-pilot seat. "Easy there old boy. I know how much this means to you. That's why we're all here. Right boys?"

White coat man with the number 2 said, "I just want to know what made him the loudmouth idiot that he was initially. This is as good time as any."

White coat man number 5 said, "I hope to meet some of your enemies to have a good fight soon. I also want to know what made you so tough that you could actually match up with us today."

White coat **_BOY _**number 6 said, "We all need a vacation. And yeah, we all know how important this step is for you."

The co-pilot turned his seat to gaze at his fellow comrades. He was a Japanese young man, wearing a black Chinese style robes inside the white coat.

**Author's notes**

Think of Jet Li's movie **Fearless** and notice the general fashion worn by Chinese at the time.

His stood up and walked to the final white coat, one with the number 1 who had not said anything but was looking intently at him. He then knelt in front of White coat man number 1.

"Thank you Lord, for all that you have done, for giving me the chance to forge my destiny. And find myself," he said.

White coat man number 1 put his hand on white coat man number 4's head. "Arise Saotome Ranma, Jedi Captain of the 4th Division. You have grown into a fine young man and most important of all, a good man with a good heart. As a son you were to me and I hope I can still treat you like my son in addition to a comrade and subordinate."

Ranma's eyes were full of tears. "How can I ever thank you, Master Andy Wong?"

The man pulled back his cowl which revealed the same Chinese man Kasumi had met 7 years earlier and had not aged a day since.

"By continuing to forge your own destiny. By being happy. By being yourself, Saotome Ranma. And by bringing me along to see your fiancé," Jedi Lord Andy Wong said, thinking that perhaps, Tendo Akane was none other than the sister of Tendo Kasumi, whose handkerchief he had yet to return for more than 400 years.

To be continued.

I hope your not going to be turned off by the 6 extra characters I'm going to introduced. Only Andy Wong is my own character though. The rest are characters I'm borrowing from other anime and shows, specifically Bleach, Warhammer 40,000 and Star Wars.

I must admit I'm not a master of Ranma anime, Star Wars or Warhammer 40,000. Only in Bleach do I consider myself a master, as I know almost everyone's name and their zanpuktos. So bear with me, I just needed to get my creative juices flowing.

I guess I'll just say who the characters are and how to envision them.

White Coat Number 1: Andy Wong Fey Hong (Own Character). I can't show you his face and don't know where to find it. His face is based on the old Masked Rider character. (called Kamen Rider, a very old show where the hero is armoured and helmet has two large red bug like eyes)

White Coat Number 2: Looks like Hyuuga Neji from Naruto and bears the same name. Character wise will be the same but powers completely different.

White Coat Number 3: Jaina Organo Solo, daughter of Princess Leia Organa and Han Solo.

White Coat Number 5: Cypher, formerly of the Dark Angels Space Marine Legion, now member of the Jedi. A _Fallen Angel _hunted by his own fellow Space Marines.

White Coat Number 6: Hitsugaya Toshirou from Bleach. Cursed with a body of a 10 year old, only ages when he uses his ultimate power.

Pilot and Ranma's lieutenant: Shihouin Yoruichi from Bleach. A loyal vice-captain of Ranma, and for once, DOES NOT LOVE HIM. She is the first woman where his Saotome charm does not work.

If your wondering what's the difference between these Jedi Captains and the normal Jedi from Star Wars, these Jedi Captains can conquer entire planets with their powers alone. And Andy Wong can destroy entire planets with his rage.

Thank you again all, for continuing to read. I promise to update at least once a week.


	3. Chapter 2: Darkness gathering

**Forging our own destinies.**

Once again, I thank you all for reading up to now. I hope you will further enjoy my story, which I intend to end with "… and they all lived happily ever after." since the greatly respected Rumiko Takahashi failed to provide such a ending for Ranma and Akane, like she did for Godai and Kyoko from Maison Ikkoku.

As much as I would like to get the six captains in the story as soon as possible, I've changed my mind and will now present the villains of this story. I think I'll have to change it to the highest adult rating soon for coarse language and strong sexual innuendo. But don't worry, I'm well aware of the "No Lemon" policy on fan Or am I wrong? Somebody correct me if we're not allowed to do lemon stories here.

Its going to be a somewhat dark chapter but I hope that you'll be comforted that next chapter is called **Chapter 3: Tadaima (I'm home)**

**Chapter 2: Darkness Gathering**

As was her practice every morning, Akane would wake up around 6:30am and go on a vigorous jog. She did it as much to keep in shape as improving her strength and stamina. Since Ranma left, she had taken her regime much further. She knew she could never beat any of her rivals in speed so she settled to becoming the 300 pound gorilla that Ranma always called her. Donning on 10kg leg weights and wielding 30kg dumbbells, she rushed out of her house to enjoy her jog.

As she jogged through the familiar sights of Nerima, she couldn't help thinking, as she did every morning for two years, of Ranma. Many times she would rush home hoping to see Ranma sparring with his father but instead of the boisterous and raucous sound of two buffoons fighting, the only thing she would hear is Kasumi cooking breakfast in the kitchen. And then there were the nightmares when she woke up screaming from a terrible nightmare about Ranma. It was often enough for Kasumi and even Nabiki to come over to comfort her shaking sister.

The nightmare had been terribly intense for the first year before they finally tapered off into a resemblance of a bad dream. The thing is that Akane could sense a pattern in them, it was consistent and not just some chaotic dream that you often couldn't remember even after waking up straight from it. And it always involved Ranma fighting in what seemed to be a war. But it couldn't be a war. The landscapes where Akane envisioned Ranma were sometimes completely out of this world, like in a volcanic landscape where there was nothing for miles around but molten lava pouring out of mini-volcanoes. Or in a city that resembled a science fiction horror movie. There was even one that was completely underwater, where she envisioned Ranma swimming in what looked like a complicated diver's suit.

But there were always consistencies. Like the monsters Ranma fought. Always the same terrible ones, in different shape and sizes but somehow Akane could recognize them. Monstrous humanoids, lizardlike and most terrifying of all, armed to the teeth and she really meant literally their teeth. And Ranma would always fight them, at first with just his bare hands and feet as he always had in Nerima. But the monsters were as skilled as he was, and moreover they always numbered more than him. She always thought that Ranma was not alone, that there were several others fighting in the background but she could never get a close look. The closest she got was that of a huge white man, dressed in black armour, firing twin pistols at the monsters near Ranma. But he was far away and the monsters had swarmed over Ranma, impaling him with their serpent like spears and then Akane would wake up screaming.

She shivered as she recalled the early months of Ranma's departure. The dreams were extremely clear to her and somehow, deep in her heart she couldn't dismiss them as bad dreams. Akane was certain they were visions somehow, of Ranma and that he was in trouble. She agonized over her helplessness to help him as the frequency of the nightmares increased and Kasumi and Nabiki was seriously thinking of Akane should stay in a mental hospital. But after 6 months of terrible nightmares, the dreadfulness of Ranma's battles began to taper off and she actually woke up after the battles with Ranma still alive. But still she would cry, for wherever Ranma was, he was suffering.

Her eyes grew blurry with some tears but she furiously rubbed them off. "Baka, the dreams are getting less and your still crying. Besides, he is Saotome Ranma. Nothing can defeat him," she said out aloud, almost trying to convince herself.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

She reached home, tired but at the same time refreshed. Exercising like that helped her keep focus for her morning classes. Like Kasumi she was attending Nerima's local college and was trying out for Tokyo University ("TU"). But despite her good grades, the requirements of TU was ridiculously high and required nothing but her utmost attention and virtually a string of Distinctions. Moreover it would cost a bomb. Nabiki was already stretched to the limits in her schemes to make money for not just her sisters but for herself. Soun and Genma remained useless, barely doing anything but play shogi.

Going to the bathroom, she noticed that Kasumi had already prepared the furo for her. She smiled for her sister, always giving thanks for every little thing that Kasumi did. She stripped herself and then lowered herself into the tub, enjoying the exhilarating feeling of warm water against her hot body, fresh from exercise. If she could, she would have slept in the furo but unfortunately, morning classes beckoned so she started scrubbing and washing herself.

Unfortunately, she wasn't alone in the bathroom.

The grand master of Anything Goes Martial Arts was currently invisible through the use of Umi Sen Ken, the invisibility technique specifically designed for watching maidens such as the beauteous Tendo Akane. The perverted Happosai resisted the strong urge to stroke himself as he needed a certain amount of concentration to not only keep himself invisible from physical eyes but also from chi senses as well. Although Akane was not trained in that art, one could never be too sure. No use wasting the eye candy on account of a simple body urge. But Happosai's resolve was greatly tested as Akane started washing her most private places and he nearly let out a moan. He must have made a noise because Akane suddenly perked up and Happosai fled from the scene.

_Sigh, this is getting tiresome, just watching the beautiful daughter of my useless student. Everyday its just watch, grope and grabbing their underwear, _Happosai thought. His underwear collection from the three sisters was amazingly large, almost like a year's supply for each of the three girls. He chuckled at the fact that no matter what he did to them, their father still did not dare to oppose him although he had made their lives almost miserable with his groping and theft. Ever since Ranma left, the three girls had been open game. The only thing that prevented him from simply taking the three Tendo girls for his own were the Amazons. Even though Akane was an enemy, she was still a woman and the Amazons did not take kindly against female degradation. The last rapist in Nerima was taken back to China and from what Happosai had heard, still being tortured alive. That had been 2 years ago.

_Damn Amazons. Lousy bitches who don't know their place in this world. All they need is a good romping. If only the stupid Musk had been bold enough to attack the Amazons and conquer them. Happosai always thought they had the manpower to conquer the Amazon village but they were reluctant to do open combat. Cowards._

The lights in Happosai head suddenly lightened. _They may be cowards, but I'm not. They want someone who can lead them to tame the bitches. They want more muscle other than themselves. I can give it to them. _Happosai thought of the cursed Pantyhose Taro and smiled. Just a simple change in name as well as fanning the megalomaniacal Taro's dream of world domination and he would be Happosai's champion. Add to the countless Yakuza gangs he knew and the Amazons would soon be outnumbered. Moreover one of their leaders were here, alone with only two apprentices who could not even match Ranma when he was here.

Dreams of panties disappeared to be replaced by harems of beautiful women in chains, tending to his every whim. It exhilarated him, making him feel more alive than even Kasumi's underwear, which was by far the hardest to get because even he was hesitant to steal and grope from someone like Tendo Kasumi. But that was soon to change. He had a plan, and he was going to do it.

He laughed maniacally as he packed his bags and a large supply of underwear and continued laughing as he ran out of the house. Even though it was a bright cheery morning, all who heard his laugh felt chilled to the bones. Especially Tendo Kasumi as she observed the perverted master. She honestly feared for their lives and decided that tonight, she must talk to her sister's about moving out of the house. It was no longer safe with that Master Happosai around.

The chaos that had always haunted Nerima appeared to be returning in full force. Whether it was Ranma's return that heralded the return of it was unclear but one thing was for certain: Happosai would no longer be the harmless pervert that he was for so long. Now he had ambition and before his long life ended, he would see it materialize.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

From the Sea of Japan, as they emerged from the waters wearing their new clothes and baggage, all six captains and a lieutenant felt a disturbance in the Force. Ranma's heart was suddenly gripped with fear, knowing that something bad was about to happen. The familiar gut feeling that always accompanied him before someone kidnapped Akane had returned full force. But Ranma had not been fighting a 15 year war without improving himself. He willed himself to meditate and calm his spirit, less his fear consume him and open him to anger, hate and suffering, the inevitable signs of the Dark side. As he slowly released himself from the meditation trance, he found the 5 captains and one lieutenant standing next to him

Andy Wong then unsheathed his magic sword, Aegrost. Neji withdrew his Katana, Gerbera Straight. Jaina turned on her purple lightsaber Violet Storm as well as her parry knife, Soulcalibur. Cypher upholstered his ancient pistols which had short lightsaber blades attached to both of them. Hitsugaya also unsheathed his sword, which was as long as he was and in the form of katana with a star shaped guard. Yoruichi put on her Lightning Claws, huge gauntlets with 3 vicious claws which crackled with energy.

As one, they put their weapons to their chests. "Justice, truth, honor, loyalty," they chanted. Then Andy Wong spoke, "The Force is with you Ranma. Have faith in it. And we will stand by you against whatever darkness that is coming to haunt you." And then, stabbing Aegrost in the air, he yelled a war cry to defy the evil forces that would soon torment Ranma. All the others did likewise and Cypher started shooting his psychic charged pellets into the air. Seeing their defiance at the Ranma's chaotic fate brought tears to the 4th Jedi Captain's eye and he too, stabbed his blue lightsaber to the air and yelled a war cry that made him one of the most feared Jedi Captains even though the 4th division was the healing and battle support squad.

"FOR TENDO AKANE!"

To be continued:

Wow, I hope the battle cry have you all perked up for the next chapter. Don't expect it too soon though. Just so you know, I'm a working adult.

So as always, reviews are extremely welcome.

To goku90504: I'm glad for your comments but I must make it clear that this is a Ranma+Akane matchup fan fiction. I understand your side and accept your views but I still don't think Akane is that bad a person. Your reviews is still appreciated.

To Dairokan: Kindly e-mail me if you know if Jaina Organa Solo has any particular Force power that separates her from the other Jedi. As far as I know, the only thing she can do better than most other Jedi is fly an X-Wing. I'm told that as of the end of the New Jedi Order, Luke Skywalker is the greatest lightsaber duelist in the galaxy.

To Star War fans in general: I was greatly saddened by the storylines of the New Jedi Order where almost all the beloved characters we know were traumatized beyond repair. One of the most distressing points I hate about the New Jedi order series is the death of Chewbacca. So I'm rewriting the events on how the war was eventually won.

I will slowly let out what exactly these Jedi Captains represent, especially the history of Andy Wong. Let's just say I'm rewriting the history of the Jedi and tracings its history to when it was called the **J**oint **E**fficient **D**efence **I**ntegrated Guard or JEDI Guard.

So please don't expect these Jedi, even Jaina Organa Solo, to be exactly like the canon novels. This is an anime crossover. I'm giving them lots of powers as well as additional weaknesses. As I mentioned before, each Jedi Captain possess powers that would make the Emperor look like a loving grandfather.

Again, thank you to all for reviewing.


	4. Chapter 3: Tadaima

To be honest with you all, I haven't got a plan on how my story is going to go on. I do know I'm going to end it with "… and they all lived happily ever after." But what is the price Ranma will have to pay to get the peace that he finally deserves? That is something that I'll have to think up as I go along. I've been dying to see a good Ranma + Akane fan fiction, or failing that, Ranma + Kasumi but those are by far the rarest fan fiction I've seen recently. So I took it upon myself to write my own fan fiction.

This will be my longest chapter yet. Many Ranma characters will come into play now.

So without further ado, I present to you:

**Chapter 3: Tadaima**

Ukyo Kuonji was not having a good day. Business was unusually slow, mostly because the Cat café had unveiled its latest Ramen concoction that was supposed to be its tastiest yet. Shampoo prancing around in her super short Mandarin cheong sam certainly helped its popularity. She sighed as she remembered a time when her beloved Ranma-chan also worked there, working his or her own feminine wiles, rivaling if not flat out beating Shampoo.

Those were the days and it seemed so far away now. She remembered showing up in class two years ago to find that Ranma was absent. Akane was silent and nothing she could say or do would make Akane talk. She even got angry enough to threaten Akane with her Spatula but Akane mainly shrugged and continued with her lunch.

Finally, she dipped into her pocket and paid Nabiki a VERY substantial fee for what happened. For 10,000 yen, she only got two words.

_"Ranma left," _Nabiki had simply said.

Oh how her heart cried that day. Her first instinct was to kill Akane who had no doubt, finally driven her cute fiancée off. But she was shocked when Akane took her first blow in the gut without resisting, almost like she accepted what was coming. And then she really looked into Akane's eyes. Instead of the anger that so often characterized her, it was replaced with a deep sorrow that seemed to have made the tomboy become a maiden overnight.

"I guess I should say sorry, I'm as much the reason Ranma wanted to leave as anyone else. But please remember Ukyo, that we ALL drove him to this point. Shampoo, Kuno, Mouse, Cologne, Nabiki, Uncle Genma, my father, Ryoga and God knows who else. We didn't let him choose Ukyo. We didn't even ask him if he wanted to choose. We treated him less than a man, or even a human. And so he left. But he promised to come back, to settle with us once and for all," Akane did not mention the new engagement between her and Ranma. The diamond ring had been given to Nabiki for safekeeping who would later keep it in the Tendo bank vault.

Ukyo was stunned beyond belief and then for the first time, truly thought of what Ranma was going through for two years straight. And it wasn't pretty, not least she coming out of nowhere, supposedly his childhood friend and attacking him. She dropped her spatula and then cried in the field.

The story of Ranma's departure spread like wildfire that day but Nabiki had already prepared Akane for the reaction. Nabiki, ever the ice-queen, protected her sister like a celebrity spokesperson, always turning away pesky students who were like reporters trying to get the latest scoop and protecting her sister likewise, even when Shampoo and Cologne came demanding answers, Nabiki had skillfully turned them away with promise of later explanations. Akane did not know what she said but since then, the Amazons had not left Nerima in search for Ranma. Shampoo wanted to kill Akane a few times after that day but was always severely punished by Cologne afterwards. It seemed that Cologne too, believed that Ranma would return. If she didn't know better, Cologne might have actually agreed that Ranma's choice had been the right choice.

Ukyo sighed, and tried not to dwell on Ranma's departure as it always saddened her. Her melodrama was broken by the arrival of customers.

"Irashaimas…….," the welcome tone died in her throat as she gazed at her customers.

One was a huge man, at least 7 feet tall and built like the Incredible Hulk. He was wearing an oversized black trenchcoat and inside he wore a grey shirt and black pants. His face was full of scars but even then, seemed oddly handsome to her. He was accompanied by a boy who looked no more than 10. What was striking about the boy was his pure white hair and green eyes. He would have been the most "Kawaii" shonnen she had ever seen were it not for his eyes, which seemed to be set in a constant frown.

"Don't you think we've got better things to do rather than eat? We've got to find the Tendo residence!" the boy was complaining.

"And Ranma said no, he specifically told us to come here and relax," the giant replied.

Ukyo's heart leapt and when the man came to sit down in front of the grill, she grabbed his collar and pulled his enormous face into her own. "Ranma? Saotome Ranma? Ranma is here?" she asked, almost giddy with excitement.

The giant was astonished at Ukyo's desperateness but quickly composed himself. "Who are you and what do you want with Ranma?"

"Why, I'm his fiancée!" Ukyo cried. "Where is he? Is he safe? Where has he been?" Uyko was almost hysterical now, and exasperated that the two customers were completely cool.

The boy went out of the restaurant and re-read the sign which clearly said "Ukyo's Okonimiyaki". He went back and looked at the giant then shook his head. Cypher sighed to himself. So this was one of the many pesky fiancées that Ranma had.

"Lady, please calm yourself. I'm sure Ranma will come to see you soon. Until then, please wait and serve us some food."

"NONSENSE! I'M GOING TO SEE MY RANMA!" she screamed and tried to run out of the restaurant.

Only to find the white haired boy blocking her and the giant's hand holding her wrist. "Let me go!" she cried as she threw a punch at the giant's face. When that didn't work, she tried to reach for her giant spatula but with one of her arms being gripped tightly, she couldn't do anything other than a wild swing which was stopped by the giant's two fingers. She screamed louder and began to fight the giant with everything she had. The giant simply took all her blows, even her scratches in his face. Even when she tried to gouge his eyes, she found that his eyes seemed to be two steel balls and she nearly broke her fingers.

Cypher, Space Marine and 5th Jedi Captain of the Jedi Guard only let her go after she was completely exhausted and collapsed sobbing on the floor. The Fallen Angel had felt every bit of pain as she fought him but as a Space Marine, he knew very well how to tolerate pain. And as a Jedi, he could even mediate under torture. As Ukyo sobbed, he looked around and spotted a thermos of hot tea. He waited until Ukyo had calmed down before pouring her a cup and offering it to her.

"Forgive me lady, for holding you against your will, but we are Ranma's friends and he is about to embark on another dangerous journey. It'll not do for distractions to happen," Cypher said softly. Ukyo looked into his eyes and saw the pity and compassion, something that she had not seen since her other died. She had always been raised as a boy and sometimes she forgot that she was a girl. Ranma was one of the few who made her feel like a woman. And here was a complete stranger who was still calling her **_lady _**after her scratching and biting.

Hitsugaya Toshirou then helped Ukyo sit herself by the counter. "Miss, my name is Hitsugaya Toshirou. This man here is my friend Cypher. We're friends of Ranma and we're accompanying him to visit his home town.

Ukyo whispered, "Is he coming back to stay? For good?"

It was Cypher who answered. "Most certainly."

And for the first time in 2 years, Ukyo smiled a real smile.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

Cologne was feeling uneasy. Two things had happened that morning. One was Happosai running from Nerima with evil intent for the first time since Cologne ran into him in Nerima. She always known about his perversity but she had never classified Happosai as evil. But the intent he had been giving was not even about stealing underwear. It was just plain sadistic.

The second was shortly after she left, she felt a chi-shockwave that washed over the entire Japan. It was as though a powerful entity had materialized and announced itself into the world, and Cologne was worried it might be of demonic origin. But the strange thing was that she felt it emanated from several persons or things, not one. And part of the chi shockwave was even familiar to her, and she had deduced that whoever induced the shockwave, they were human. Whether that bode ill for her small clan or Nerima for that matter remained to be seen. She intended to investigate the source soon, after the rush hour was gone.

A customer entered the shop. Shampoo who was serving became wary as she saw that the customer was a she. A gaijin with fiery red hair. She was the same height as Shampoo and carried herself in a way that turned on the alarms in Shampoo's head. _Dangerous girl this is. Hope will not have to give her a kiss of death_, Shampoo thought.

The gaijin girl sniffed the air and her eyes lit up at the good smell of food. Finding no empty seat, she politely asked a group of boys, which turned out to be from the Hentai Squad which attacked Akane every morning once upon a time, if she could sit at their table which had an empty seat. The perverts could not believe their luck and with great fanfare, ushered her into the seat. Shampoo was worried and decided to take her order to get a message across to her regarding her company.

"Hello, Welcome to NekoHanten. You want great Chinese Ramen?" she asked the gaijin.

"Sure, what's good around here? I see almost everyone eating the same thing," the gaijin said.

"We got Special Ranma noodle. Shampoo just invented. You want one?" Shampoo asked.

"Hey Shampoo, why don't you join us? I'm sure you could take a break from your work?" a boy from their group actually dared to ask.

"Shampoo no time to play with pervert boys. Pervert make Shampoo go sick," she looked intently at the gaijin girl. The gaijin merely smiled back. "I'm sure these gentleman mean me no harm. And if they do, I hope you won't mind picking up after their mess when I'm done with them," she said.

Shampoo's eyes narrowed. She quickly moved off to the kitchen and found her Cologne looking at the gaijin. "A powerful one, that girl is. Be careful Shampoo. Do not provoke her or do anything to attract attention to yourself. We must observe her."

The girl ate her Ramen with a gusto. "That was fantastic Shampoo. I'm sure whoever marries you would be very happy indeed."

The compliment truly made her happy, as people rarely thought she and Ranma was a good match. "AIYAH!!!" Shampoo giggled. "Shampoo have husband but husband away in long long trip. When he come back, feed him lots and lots of Ramen.

Inside her head, Jaina Organa Solo winced. _What a bimbo, _she thought to herself. But the Ramen was truly excellent. "Wow, you're married? That's great! I hope your husband will come back soon."

"Aiyah! Of course he come back soon. He come then Ranma go back to China with Shampoo!"

_Target identified. Commence Operation Distract Bimbo _she thought to herself.

"You seem to be a nice girl, I've just arrived in Nerima and am going to school here. Want to be friends?" Jaina asked sweetly. Shampoo completely forgot about her earlier assessment of her and gave Jaina a glomp. "Friends of course we are!" she cried.

Jaina winced and let herself be hugged by the Amazon.

From her view point, Cologne frowned. _Something doesn't feel right_, she thought. But her customers beckoned and although she knew that the girl was dangerous, she felt absolutely no ill-will from her. Her chi aura was as pure as a virgin. _Oh well,_ _I'll go have a walk later._

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"O HO HO HO HO! OH HO HO HO HO! OH HO HO URK!!"

A crazed gymnast practicing juggling spiked clubs in the gardens of her mansion suddenly fainted as a man with white eyes suddenly materialized in front of her and stunned her by disrupting her chi-force with a well placed touch. Her crazed alligator took one sniff at the intruder and went squealing back into the pond.

Kodachi's crazed brother Tatewaki Kuno rushed out of the house wielding his bokken. "How dare thee knave to intrude on this sacred house of Kuno? You will pay for this foul assassin," he said as he moved into an offensive stance.

Hyuuga Neji observed his stance and while it was adequate, it was hardly worth his time. He simply took out a blaster set on stun and fired it into Kuno. He remembered Ranma's description of Kuno very clearly, a bokken wielding idiot with absolutely no brain. And if Kuno had no brain, then Kodachi had no mind.

Based on this, Neji couldn't be bothered to think of a ruse to tie up their attentions. So he settled for directly attacking them. The other 5 captains would admonish him for pre-emptive strike but frankly, Neji didn't care. He saw the most efficient way to give Ranma some peace and he took it.

Luckily for the crazed siblings, Neji had changed. 10 years earlier, Neji would have killed them in their sleep.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Akane and Nabiki stood side by side as Kasumi explained her uneasiness and insisted that they somehow move out by tonight. Both thought she was over reacting as Happosai hadn't gone beyond peeping and groping yet. They had never really thought of him as evil and truth be told, neither had Kasumi until that morning. Her attempts to talk with her father merely turned Soun into a human water fountain while Genma turned himself into a panda and started playing with a tire to avoid talking about the issue. Kasumi was incensed at her father and further strengthened her resolve to convince her sisters to move out.

Unfortunately, Nabiki had very bad news: their surplus funds had run out. It was not to say they were broke, its just that according to Nabiki's budget, they just couldn't afford to move out anywhere without dipping into the household funds needed to feed the family as well as pay off the student loans. Nabiki did have some business ventures but at the moment, the stock market was at a standstill and nobody was making a profit or a loss at the same time.

Akane sighed. "Onechan, I don't know why you are so disturbed. Even if Happosai becomes evil, aren't you forgetting the Amazons? Remember what they did to that monster who raped Sayuri?" Akane's good friend had been the victim and if it weren't for the Amazons, she would have been dead. It was fortunate that Sayuri had a strong character and had been able to get over the ordeal after 1 ½ years.

"I know but something tells me that Happosai is aware of that factor. I'm sorry sisters but I've just never felt so worried before. If you could read chi, then you would know what I mean," Kasumi said.

Though most people didn't realize it, Kasumi could sense chi better than her sisters although her level wasn't that of a martial artist.

"I understand sis but nevertheless, we can't. We'll just have to inform the Amazons later," Nabiki said.

"Cologne already knows. And she actually agreed with me. She also told me something else happened this morning. I didn't sense it as I was taking a bath at the time but apparently something is coming to Japan. Maybe even Nerima. Cologne couldn't put her finger on it but its troubling her as much as Happosai."

She took her sister's hands. "Please, take care of yourselves. Be alert. Akane, I know you can fight but if we have to run if one of those things come to Nerima. Remember, Ranma isn't here anymore," Kasumi said sadly.

Akane felt sad once again. "I know onechan. I'll be careful. I just wish that baka would come back soon. I can't believe I'm beginning to miss his insults."

"Who you calling a baka, uncute tomboy?"

Kasumi gasped at the sight behind Akane. Nabiki's face was smirking as though she was expecting it all along. For in the living room, Akane had been sitting with her back towards the garden. Her heart fluttered and started beating like a herd of wild horses. Horses, Ran ma, she thought than blushed furiously when she realized what the word also meant. She slowly turned around, dreading yet somehow giddy with anticipation, like getting a birthday surprise party in which everyone conspired to make it as though they had forgotten her birthday.

And there standing on top of the wall, was Ranma. He was wearing his usual Chinese clothes but instead of a red silk shirt, the one he wore was black and long sleeved. Then Akane noticed his face and her heart screamed: he looked terribly old. No, Ranma wasn't that old, but his face was no longer the arrogant face that she always knew. Instead, they had become something like hers, after months of constant nightmares, she already had a haggard look around her that made her look like she never slept. But Ranma's looked ten times worse. When the two gazed into each other's eyes, Akane was shocked by his eyes, who looked like they had seen the depths of hell itself.

The two gazed at each other for a long time.

"Ranma?" she whispered.

"Akane," he said.

It was all that they needed. Akane leapt over the koi pond and Ranma jumped towards her, meeting her embrace in mid air. The two hugged each other fiercely and both of their dams broke. They cried tears of joy after the long years of separation. Although to Ranma it had been 10 years while for Akane it was 2 years, it was long enough.

"Tadaima," he whispered. Akane looked into his blue eyes and continued to hug him.

"SHI SHI HOKODAN!"

A part of the wall exploded as a woman was blasted through the wall of the Tendo compound. Before Akane could blink, Ranma had disappeared and intercepted the flying woman before she could crash right into the other two Tendo sisters. Then she noticed that the woman was exceedingly beautiful, with exquisite dark skin though it was currently bruised and bloodied. And Ranma was handling her with a delicate care that she thought only she was privy to. The old familiar anger raised its ugly head but before she could loose her temper, she saw another familiar sight, and this time it sickened her knowing that he had finally gotten insane enough to hurt a woman.

Hibiki Ryoga stepped through the hole. He took one look at Ranma and shouted his familiar phrase, "SAOTOME RANMA, PREPARE TO DIE!" as he prepared another blast. But this time, it wasn't the usual red energy of depression. This time it was a sickly mush of black, brown and green energy, almost like sewage water that gathered in his arms. And then he fired it at Ranma, who was standing in front of Kasumi and Nabiki.

"RANMA!" Akane screamed as the energy blasted from Ryoga and reached Ranma……

To be continued.

Author's note:

Wow, this is the hardest chapter to write. I decided to put in most of the Nerima Wrecking Crew and then have Ranma's friends keep them at bay. I hope you guys are happy with having some of the rest of the Ranma cast here. I'm particularly fond of Ukyo who is the most normal and decent of the group so I enjoyed writing about her.

Next chapter, you'll really see just how powerful Ranma has become. Not just in terms of strength but also in wisdom.

Oh, and for those who think I've forgotten about Andy Wong, I haven't. He's got the most dangerous assignment of all. Continue reading my next chapters to find out. Kasumi's waited years to find out. She can wait a few more chapters.


	5. Chapter 4: The trouble with Ryoga

**Author's rants**

Sorry guys, probably a boring chapter. But tonight, I'm out of ideas. Will need time before I can get an idea of how to bring Kasumi and Andy together, as well as flesh out details of Happosai's evil scheme. Not to mention the chemistry between Akane and Ranma. I realized I'm making it too fairytale like and I'll have to add in some discord to make them more realistic.

In any case, thank you for reading and reviewing. One request to all, please do longer reviews. So far I haven't heard anything about my grammar or plot points. It'll be great to get more than one liner reviews. And I'm surprised no one is curious about Cypher and Jaina as they're the only other non anime characters here.

Note to all: I've decided to extend Ranma's years away from Nerima from 10 to 15 years. I'll amend the earlier chapters later.

**Chapter 4: The trouble with Ryoga**

The sickly beam of energy that was undeniably the colour of shit shot out of Ryoga's arm and towards Ranma, the strange woman and her two sisters. Just before the energy enveloped Ranma, she saw the woman raise her arm, pointed a finger at the monstrous blast….

…. And dissipated it. The Shi Shi Hokodan, one of the most powerful chi blasts in human history, neutralized by that woman.

She extracted herself from Ranma's arms, her expression stony and looked much like Nabiki, completely emotionless. But her voice could have frozen a penguin.

"Taichou, I have failed you. Allow me to redress my honour."

_Taichou? Captain? What the hell is going on here? _The thought went through the minds of the three Tendo girls. _And since when do girls go around protecting Ranma?_

As if the arrival of Ryoga wasn't enough Genma and Soun emerged from the house. "Oh my ungrateful son, you have returned! Please save your father from that abomination!"

Ranma ignored his father, speaking to the woman, "Permission granted Yoruichi. Neutralise him but don't kill him. I don't think you need me to tell you that there's something wrong with my friend Ryoga."

"With friends like these, I think I understand why you were so tough Taichou," Yoruichi remarked as she continued to observe the crazed bandanna fighter who was now unfurling his umbrella, which both knew was made out of iron, not bamboo.

She walked towards Ryoga, with nothing but her slightly tattered clothes.

"What are you doing boy? How dare you let a woman fight for you? Oh, you are a disgrace to our family," Genma cried crocodile tears while Soun echoed familiar sentiments. It came to the point that Kasumi and even Nabiki became completely pissed off at the fathers that they forgot the berserk Ryoga.

Shihouin Yoruichi dropped into a low defensive stance as Ryoga started thrusting the umbrella as though it was a rapier. She knew that the force of even one hit would send her spinning, like the one that had surprised her earlier and gave Ryoga enough time to discharge that sickly energy. She sighed as she dodged Ryoga, wondering why her Taichou considered this mad man a friend. After one more thrust, she leaped into his body and launched a series of punches and precision kicks which were far too fast for Ryoga to block. But Ryoga was incredibly tough, almost like Cypher she realized, and Ryoga hadn't even gone through the genetic modification into a Space Marine. The attack pained Ryoga but did not incapacitate him. Opening the umbrella, he pulled it back hoping to sandwich her between his body and the umbrella. But Yoruichi jumped out from his grasp and when Ryoga attempted to stab her again, she merely used the force of his thrust to leap high into the air.

In the air, she finally opened her medpack, which was stored in the pockets of the baggy pants that she wore. Taking two bottles, she extracted a drop of each into a container, mixed them then used a nail polish to paint the concoction over her index fingernail. All in mid air. Then she uttered a spell.

_Three moons of Azeroth, Blue Child, Silver Blade, Green Horn,_

_Bath the planet with your wondrous powers, give its denizens life._

_JEDI archive incantation number 14, Seal of the Beast,_

_SUBDUE THAT MONSTER_

She screamed as a stab of white light shot from her hand towards Ryoga. But instead of hitting Ryoga, the lights spread into six directions and weaved a complicated pattern around Ryoga, before restraining him in a complex spider web made initially out of white light. Eventually the light faded but looked like he was held up with invisible ropes. He thrashed and screamed but could not form his hands to bring about the Shi Shi Hokodan.

Dropping right in front of Ryoga, she let Ryoga thrash and struggle against his invisible bonds, saying obscenities that made even Kasumi angry before she flicked her fingernail at his forehead. At once, Ryoga went limp and sound asleep.

With the exception of Ranma, all onlookers were flabbergasted at the woman, who not only displayed magical powers but could also defeat Ryoga with a flick of her finger. They were of course, unaware of the chemical that Yoruichi used.

"Oh the shame, now we don't have any heirs to the schools. Ryoga had been defeated and Ranma has become a wimp, letting a girl fight for him," Soun wailed.

Ignoring Soun completely, Ranma told Yoruichi, "I think you better get him back to the ship. Do whatever you can for him and report to me later."

The vice-captain nodded and lifted Ryoga's body slinging it over her shoulder as well as picking up the umbrella as though it weighed nothing. "I'll send a psychic message to the other taichou's but I can't sense Lord Wong in Japan.

"It's OK, I'll contact him myself. I got a feeling he doesn't want to be disturbed now. Now move along before Akane loses her temper before I get to explain your relationship with me."

"Acknowledged," she said than started roof-hopping, carrying Ryoga's body and umbrella with her.

Still ignoring the raving fathers, Ranma turned to Nabiki. "Nabs, if you have any secret place where we can talk in private, please tell me now. Its been a long while and believe it or not, I don't intend to fight everyone in Nerima on my first day back."

As always, Nabiki held out her hand. "How much you willing to pay for it?" Even as Kasumi and Akane glared at her.

Ranma reached into a fold in his sleeve, withdrew a coin and dropped it into Nabiki's hand. She looked at it disdainfully before noticing its glint. Upon close inspection, she found the coin to be pure gold. She nodded and beckoned Ranma, Akane and Kasumi to follow her.

"GIRLS, I FORBID YOU TO ASSOCIATE WITH RANMA!" the demon head of Soun Tendo materialized in front of them.

For the first time, Ranma acknowledged the fathers existence. "Soun, please do not act like an idiot. I wish to have a talk, not a wedding. Please get out of our way. And even if Akane is still underage, Kasumi and Nabiki most certainly aren't. They are free to go wherever they like, including moving out of your own house. So please leave and let us have some peace."

"Who are you to tell me anything? You're nothing but a runaway who abandoned his owned inazauke and failed to go through his won wedding. You have absolutely no right to come back to this house. I am still the owner of this house and I decide who stays here!" Soun roared, still giving the illusion of a demon head.

"Dad, stop this nonsense!" Akane said angrily but Ranma held his hand.

"Everyone, just hold on to my arms, and don't let go no matter what."

Nabiki and Kasumi both grabbed and arm while Akane held Ranma from behind.

"Where do you think your going with my daughters?" Soun continued to rant.

Ranma looked at him and sighed. "Soun Tendo, regardless of what you think I am, I am going to spend time with your daughters. If you think you can stop me, then by all means try."

"I …. I …..I …." as usual, his cowardice got the better of him. Although he publicly called Ranma a coward and weakling, he still remembered Ranma before he left Nerima and he had long surpassed him. He began to sputter nonsense about how ungrateful and dishonourable Ranma was.

Ranma snorted. "Let's go girls," he said as he started roof hopping, with 3 Tendos attached to him. The three Tendo's gasped as they saw themselves flying into the air but strangely, they did not seem to even need to hold on to Ranma. While Nabiki have Ranma directions on their destination, Kasumi experimentally let go of her hand and discovered that she was still flying along side Ranma, as though another force was making her fly as well.

Eventually, they all arrived at none other than Furinkan High. Ranma's eyes narrowed when he saw the building even as Nabiki asked him to land on the rooftop. He complied and she led them to the principal's office, where she non-chalantly took out a set of keys that Ranma recognized as belonging to Kuno's crazed father and opened the door to the teacher's lounge. "Present from Kuno," she said matter of factly.

For a teacher's lounge, it was completely luxurious. A fully stocked bar was situated at the entrance while plush sofas and armchairs adorned the room. It even had a Jacuzzi and a 42 inch Plasma TV. For the first time in years, Ranma's mouth went wide open and Akane for a moment so a resemblance to the youth she had known two years before.

"Oh My God! So this is where our school funds go!" he said angrily.

"Consider it payback for now. Make yourself at home, I'm going to pour myself a martini," she said. The three seated themselves around a small coffee table. A silence fell upon them as though they didn't know where to start. It was only broken when Nabiki returned with a glass of martini in her hand.

"So Ranma, tell us about that babe who came to save your ass today," she smirked.

Akane again felt that irrational anger she had worked so hard to conquer trying to resurface. But Ranma did not instantly go on the defensive or stutter at the mention of the woman who had defeated Ryoga like he was nothing.

"Her name is Shihouin Yoruichi. I saved her many years ago and she has sworn to be forever by my side since," he said.

"So let me guess, another fiancée to add to our lives?" Akane said sarcastically.

He looked at Akane completely serious. "No, she pledged her life to me, not her heart. There's a difference Akane. We're friends, but she's essentially a loyal soldier. Her people are very famous for their life debts and her life debt to me won't end until she dies. And it'll expand to you should we ever marry, and to our children as well."

"Years? Ranma, its been only two years since you left," Kasumi said quietly.

Ranma's eyes took on a glazed look. "Two years for you Kasumi nechan, 15 years for me. Its up to you whether you want to believe me or not, but I've not been in this world since the day I left Nerima."

"To simplify what happened, I met a man who knew powerful magic and became his student. He brought me into another universe where I fought in a terrible war beyond your darkest imaginations. It was there I became a soldier and learned more about martial arts that I ever knew, including killing. I also learned medicine while I was there, for I learned to love healing bones rather than killing them. But that would come long after I spilled my first blood."

Ranma looked at Akane. "It'll be easier to explain once my friends start coming. But for now, they're all making sure that we get together quietly like this. It would have been perfect if Ryoga hadn't surprised Yoruichi like that. What the hell is going on with Ryoga anyway?"

"Well Ranma you see, after you left, Genma sort of adopted Ryoga as a Saotome, meaning that Ryoga would be the one who would join the two schools with one of us. Needless to say, he disowned you," Kasumi said sadly.

"Oh great, I know just how effective he's training methods can be. Judging by Ryoga's current state, I'm surprised he's even alive," Ranma said.

"What happened to Ryoga? You and Yoruichi seemed to know exactly what was wrong with him," Akane asked.

"That guy simply overusing the shi shi hokodan, which as you all know, is fueled by his depression. But I suspect Pops, in an effort to make it more powerful, started adding other emotions into the mix, including I suspect, lust. Anger and hatred added its mix and the result is an emotionless zombie who will sooner or later die. At the moment, Yoruichi will pump enough sedative to make him sleep for weeks. He'll be fed via IV fluids as we pump more nutrients to stabilize his chi. I'm glad I came back because that was his breaking point. If Yoruichi had really fought him, he would have exploded."

"Kami sama, Uncle Genma did that?" Kasumi said, shocked at Genma's methods. Although they all knew what Ranma went through with the Neko Ken, it still seemed unlikely to them that he would repeat the same mistake on someone who was NOT his flesh and blood.

"Don't worry about Ryoga. The guy needs a good rest and Yoruichi is a marvelous doctor and nurse. She's actually better at healing than she is at fighting. I'm thinking of retiring soon and Yoruichi would be perfect to succeed me. Provided she still defeats me though."

Nabiki crossed her arms. "Back to the whole other universe business, what makes you so sure we're going to believe everything you say? You say your fifteen years older but if you did go through hell, you would look it anyway in two years. And aren't there supposed to be aliens? Yoruichi isn't one."

"Actually, she is. She's not human as you'll find out soon enough. Her true form I admit is actually terrifying. But I pray you will all come to know what a great and noble being she is. I feel no shame saying that I would never have become what I am today partly because of her."

"So exactly what kind of Captain are you? Did you join the military?" Nabiki still hadn't grasped the concept of Ranma training in another world.

"More like help created one. Believe me, the war on the other side makes all the wars in our world pale in comparisons. But please don't make me tell you. Like I said, the horror is far beyond your comprehension. I took several years to get over the magnitude of it," Ranma said.

"So Yoruichi is just a friend?" Akane asked.

Ranma turned to look at Akane. "She is more than a friend. Akane, please understand that there are different types of love, like the one I've borne for you since the day we met. For Yoruichi, its something else. How do you describe your relationship of someone who has been like a sister to you yet isn't your sister? Who has saved your life numerous times from certain death, and most of all, is willing to lay down her life for you? These are qualities that you've already demonstrated but Yoruichi has also done so. Yet she does not wish to marry me. She has sworn her life to me, and I have accepted her as part of my life. Hopefully it'll only end AFTER I die of old age."

Akane didn't know what to say. She knew she was being irrational again and the familiar jealousy was raising its ugly head again. She fought to keep it down but still couldn't keep away the sense of inferiority as she realized that Yoruichi and Ranma had gone through more obstacles and adventures that made her two years with Ranma seem like a picnic.

"Akane," Ranma stood up and sat beside Akane, putting himself between Kasumi and Akane on the sofa. "Please tell me what you feel?"

Akane didn't dare to answer. She was hardpressed enough not to mallet him.

"Its about Yoruichi isn't it?"

She looked angrily at him. "After all you've said, how am I supposed to believe that you've come back to me? You say you've been gone for 15 years. How long have you known Yoruichi?"

Ranma thought for awhile. "About 14 years," he said.

14 years…. it seemed so little but to Akane, it seemed like a lifetime. "So why haven't you fallen in love with her? She's more beautiful and devoted than I ever could be!"

"That's where you are wrong Akane. First of all, you are forever the most beautiful woman in my eyes. Second, yes, Yoruichi has been with me through thick and thin. Yet what she has gone through is no different than what you've gone through for me. Just because she's done it more times than you doesn't diminish you. Thirdly, she doesn't piss me off which I love the most about you. She's completely loyal and will rarely contradict my commands unless its about battles and medicine. Outside the fighting, she's too submissive. And finally, I made a promise to you, and Saotome Ranma never breaks a promise."

He took Akane's hands into his. "Akane, just because you haven't been through what I've gone through doesn't mean you've become unworthy of me. If anything, I should be the one who should question his worthiness to you. I've killed Akane, in addition to healing and saving countless lives. I've done terrible things before reaching my equilibrium, my balance here in life. Things that will take a long time to explain to you, but I fully intend for there to be no secrets between us. The longer the better. I would like more time to date the first woman I've ever loved in my life. Please accept me Akane."

Akane looked into his eyes and once more, saw the terrible depth in them. But his blue eyes remained blue and finally, Akane saw him not as a distant stranger but as Ranma. Tears welled up in her eyes and she hugged Ranma, crying tears of joy, as was Ranma now.

Kasumi grinned ear to ear and gave thanks to God that Ranma had returned, and had returned with his love and honour intact. She felt a presence behind her and shock ran through her as she saw who had entered.

Ukyo Kuonji was there, in between a humungous man and a small 10 year old boy. She looked at Ranma with longing but at the same time, the teary reunion of Ranma and Akane bit her heart in two. She just stood there, not knowing what to do, nor knowing why Cypher and Hitsugaya suddenly decided to help her find Ranma.

Ranma and Akane soon noticed Ukyo's presence. Ranma's eyes pleaded with Akane and she let him go, no longer plagued by the green monster of jealousy. Ranma stood up and went to Ukyo. Then to her Ukyo's great shock, the insensitive macho Ranma enveloped her in a hug.

"Hey Uchan, long time no see," he said.

"Ran…… ma….. chan?" she whispered as she slowly hugged him back. Then her embrace grew fierce as she broke down crying. "Ranma! Its you, its really you!" she cried.

Akane smiled contentedly, finally understanding what Ranma meant by different degrees of love. She had the best example all along: Uyko Kuonji, whom Ranma also loved but only as a friend.

"So you are Tendo Akane. I must admit, Ranma's description of you as an uncute tomboy does not do you justice," Cypher said as he glanced at Akane. He held out his hand to her. "Cypher at your service." Akane was astonished by his size but his tone was formal and underneath his scarred face belied a noble soul that she could somehow sense. She stood up and bowed a little before taking his hand. "Tendo Akane, nice to meet you Cypher.

"Hitsugaya Toshirou. Nice to meet you all," the white haired boy said as he shook hand with Akane, Nabiki and Kasumi. When Kasumi introduced herself the two Captains eyes lit up and they winked at each other, which Kasumi did not fail to notice.

"Anou, is there something wrong with me?" she asked, feeling her hair for something that might have made the two wink at her looks.

"Oh no Miss, nothing at all" the two said at exactly the same time causing Nabiki to do a Spock Maneuver with her eyebrow. _If somebody doesn't tell me everything that's going on here, I swear I'll make them bankrupt by the end of their stay in Nerima,_ she thought to herself.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Far away from Japan, deep in the forests of Sichuan, there was an unholy gathering. There were a dozen men and one woman, the leaders of the Musk tribe sitting in a great hall built underneath the ground, a massive cavern that served as the nearest military base to the Amazon garrisons that protected the village. Joining the gathering was a monstrous entity with the body of a bull, wings like a crane, an eel for a tail and had sprouted gross tentacles over certain parts of his body, including his genitals. There were also evil looking Japanese men and dozens of other denizens who were the scum of the criminal world. The most bloodthirsty cutthroats that Happosai had managed to find were now gathered in China. As he finished outlining his plans, he found thunderous applause among the non-Musk attendees. The Musk remained skeptical but after several more assurances to the Musk, as well as lining out the contract that would divide the spoils between the groups, Prince Herb of the Musk vetoed his councilmen and joined Happosai's unholy alliance. Happosai cackled, finally knowing that his plan was about to begin, and nothing is more exhilarating to the old man than having a goal and striving to achieve it.

From his viewpoint, completely invisible from the naked eye and chi-users, Andy Wong frowned.

To be continued

Not my best chapter I'm afraid. Took me two days to do it while for the other 4 chapters, I did them non stop, my ideas sticking to me and begging to be put down on paper Not so with this chapter. I think my work is stressing me out.

Anyway, it's your job to give proper reviews to inform me of my mistakes and your opinions. Please give me some constructive feedback so I'll know my areas that need improvement. Not in terms of my storyline but my grammar and style of writing. I'm NOT going to change this to another Ranma pairing if you get my drift.

I'm toying with hooking Ukyo with Cypher but Cypher has a dark complicating history that is really beyond the Ranma universe or even the Star Wars universe. Believe me, the setting in Warhammer 40000 is not pretty.

So until the next time, I bid you all goodnight.


	6. SideStory1:the Chef and the Space Marine

**Author's rants**

Thanks to those few who managed to point out my mistakes. I shouldn't have mentioned the evil conference so soon. As a result, unless I rewrite my previous chapters, Andy Wong will be absent for a long time while and Kasumi will have to wait a little longer. Probably just as well. Bringing 5 Jedi Captains was already overpowering Ranma's gang but having Andy Wong…. let's just say one of the other jobs of a Jedi Captain is to destroy the JEDI Lord should he turn to the dark side.

I would like to introduce Cypher now. Although I've never played Warhammer before, except the Dawn of War strategy game, I am extremely intrigued by the storyline. I must admit I never played the game though, just read the histories of that storyline.

As most of this story is dedicated to Cypher, I think its more fitting I call this a side story rather than Chapter 5.

**Side Story 1: The Chef and the Space Marine**

That night, Kasumi suggested they go for dinner at a nice Western restaurant whose owner she knew. Actually, Kasumi had helped the owner out with her recipes and as a result, the La Fontana Restaurant had become extremely successful as the only Italian restaurant in Nerima. The owner had been so grateful that she actually pledged 10 of her income to Kasumi, which Kasumi had banked to Nabiki's bank account every month. Nabiki had been annoyed when Kasumi only took 10 but Kasumi reasonably said that anything more than that would be extravagant seeing that the rest of the business set up was completely the owner's, and it was already more than what their regular chefs earned.

Haruno Sakura, the owner of the restaurant immediately greeted her favourite patron and ushered the 7 guests into a private room. As they were about to take their order, the door opened to reveal a gaijin girl with dishevelled red hair and rumpled clothes. Ranma took one look at her and said, "So how did you enjoy the Amazon glomp of doom?"

She glared at him. "I'm a woman you idiot. My tastes do not run that way. That Amazon girl is absolutely mad, rubbing her affections in public. And how the hell does a martial artist like her grow double D breasts anyway?"

Ranma shrugged. "Secret of the Amazons. They can get the most beautiful out of the most butch girls, with very rare exceptions."

"Oh, may I introduce to you, 3rd Captain Jaina Organa Solo, Space combat specialist, and the best pilot in the world for anything that moves, mechanical or otherwise. Jaina, meet Kasumi, Nabiki, Ukyo and Akane," Ranma said, pointing at the Tendo girls and Ukyo in succession.

Jaina looked at Akane Tendo carefully. "Ranma, you really must be gay if you think this is an uncute tomboy," she said as she sat down on a chair brought in for her, between Hitsugaya and Nabiki.

"Funny, I was saying the same thing an hour ago," Cypher added. "Clearly our resident doctor has some perverse sense of beauty. No wonder he never fell for Vice-Captain Shihouin."

Akane smirked at Ranma. "Who's an uncute tomboy now Ranma?"

Ranma only grinned. "Only to me Akane, only to me."

She felt so tempted with picking up the table and smashing it on Ranma's head, as she had done 4 years ago when he first came to their house.

They ordered their food and had a thoroughly enjoyable dinner. The three sisters had plenty to tell about their college lives, and Ranma was slightly jealous that even in college, Akane managed to attract boys. But it was Kasumi who took the cake, as every eligible bachelor was trying to woo her. At the mention of the attempted flirting, Kasumi blinked and said, "Oh, so were they actually trying to date me?" which caused everyone to face vault and shake their head in disbelief.

The four Captains however, minimised their story telling, thinking it best to reveal bit by bit, the horrors they already went through. It wasn't as though all 15 years of Ranma's life was dark, it was just that all of what little triumph and victories they had was marred by the sheer cost of the Yuuzhan Vong war.

"So, Ranma is number 4, Jaina is number 3, Cypher is number 5 and Hitsugaya is number 6. So where is number 1 and 2?" Nabiki asked.

"We're not at liberty to say," Hitsugaya said matter of factly.

"Number 2 rarely socialises and he has other assignments. As for Number 1, well, let's just say he's investigating a wave of evil energy we all felt this morning," Cypher said.

Kasumi jerked at the mention of it. "Did you feel it too? Please, is it dangerous?"

The four captains fell silent. "Kasumi, I wish nothing better than to say that there's nothing to worry about. But the evil you felt is real. Somebody or something is up to something nasty, and we're going to stop it. Do you know what us the source?" asked Jaina.

"Yes, it's the grandmaster of the Anything Goes Martial Arts School, Happosai."

Ranma's eyes widened. "The old pervert? I mean, we all know how lewd he is but evil? I can't believe it though its not that far off from his personality."

"Please Ranma, I felt it from him when he was less than 10 yards away. I've had never been so afraid in my life until now. When you came, I was just trying to convince my sisters to move out of the house."

Ranma put his hand on Kasumi's and patted it. "There there Kasumi. I'm here now and so are the rest of us. And besides, our Jedi Lord is currently tracking down Happosai. Believe me, Happosai will be no match for him if he decides to confront our Lord."

"Wait a minute, your leader, your **_lord_**, is out there scouting for you and you're all enjoying ourselves? What sort of leader do you guys have?" Nabiki asked, astonished.

"A leader that has sacrificed more than all of us combined. And who regards us as his sons and daughters, as precious to him as is every soldier under his command. But don't think that he is going to solve all of our problems for us. He could but it would not help us grow and be as strong as we are now. He is not perfect, but he is the greatest man who ever lived. And against the shadow that now threatens us, he is the only one capable of masking his presence perfectly from evil. He has gone through the light and the dark, heaven and hell, touched by chaos, brought back to order. He is Andy Wong, father of humanity," Hitsugaya Toshirou said so gravely that even the other 3 captains bowed their heads in silence, remembering the man who had given them a purpose, who had come to their aid in their respective lives and elevated from wallowing in darkness into the glory of holy battle.

"So basically, he isn't going to help us?" Nabiki further asked.

Ranma turned to her. "Yes he will help us. But in a way that will make all of us come out of the conflict stronger. Like Hitsugaya said, he's not perfect. There may be collateral damage but in the end, we'll pull through. And believe me, every death affects him. In any case, he should be back in a few days depending on what he's found out. I've never known him to go on an espionage mission and not be gone for more than a month though."

Cypher raised his glass of wine. "That just means more time to relax and await the coming storm," he said.

"Cheers to that Cypher," Jaina raised her glass and clinked it against Cypher's.

"In any case Kasumi, until Andy Wong returns, we can relax. Please take your worry off for awhile. We're here now, and we'll do whatever we can to restore our control over our destinies," Ranma said.

"Thanks Ranma, that means a lot to me."

The door opened and waiters came in bearing out main courses. After Cypher briefly said his praises to his Emperor, they all dug in.

Later that night, the four Captains escorted them into the Tendo dojo. "Would you like to stay with us? We got plenty of futons and you can use the Dojo," Kasumi offered.

"Thanks Kasumi chan, but if we force our presence into your house, we'll be no better than that old pervert Happosai. We'll be staying at Hotel Nerima for awhile."

Hitsugaya took out what looked like a small metal patch that was shaped like a pentagon. He took Kasumi's hand and slapped it on the back of her left hand where it stuck. "This is a communications device. To use it, just touch it like this," and he used Kasumi's other finger to touch the com device. "Then say any of our names to contact us."

Kasumi said into the device, "Ranma."

The device which was situated at the back of Ranma's hand started to beep. He touched the pad and said, "Hello" which repeated itself in Kasumi's com.

"Pretty handy. Can we have one?" Nabiki asked.

"Of course. Just don't try to sell it Nabiki. The technology that made this can be easily translated into weapons of mass destruction," Hitsugaya said as he put two more devices on Akane's and Nabiki's hands. "You can detach it anytime you want but try not to do so. It'll also act as a tracking device for us. So if you're captured, put it elsewhere on your body."

"Oh, I think we should give Ukyo one as well," Cypher said as he gave Ukyo one of the coms.

"But why, I mean aren't you all more concerned about the Tendos?" Ukyo was surprised as she was considered worth protecting.

"Uchan, of course we care about you. I also care about Shampoo but remember that of all the martial artists, she is the best and along with Mouse and Cologne, they're already well protected. This is just a precaution. Oh yeah, we've got to install a sensor net around the dojo. That way we can keep track of movement around your house from afar," Ranma said.

The group left the Tendos and Ranma at their house while Jaina, Hitstugaya and Cypher started walking Ukyo to her restaurant.

"Guys, can you leave me to talk with Ukyo in private?" Cypher asked the other captains.

Everyone looked at Cypher with surprise. "This is for Ukyo's good," he said.

The other 2 captains looked at each other than promptly disappeared.

"Why did you do that for? I was hoping to get to know Jaina better.

"What you already wanted to say you have said it. But I would like to discuss the matter of the engagement between you and Ranma. I understand that his father renegade on his promise and resulted in you carrying a blood oath against Ranma."

Ukyo looked at the ground. "Its not just that, I was forever treated as a boy after that incident, to train to hunt down the traitor that I initially thought was Ranma. And now I can't go back unless he marries me."

Cypher sighed. "Oaths of honour can be troublesome can it?"

"Do you have one yourself?," Ukyo asked.

"Yes, one that has haunted me for over 60 years."

"What is it with Jedi Captains? Are they all long lived?"

"Ranma is completely normal, as is Jaina. Hitsugaya is something of an anomaly, he is ageing but as long as he stays in his cursed form, he won't age. But when he uses his powers, the ageing takes effect immediately. As for me …." Cypher paused, not quite sure if he should describe to her the process of a being a Space Marine.

"You don't have to tell if you don't want to. I was just curious as to how to you, 60 years seems like a short time."

"It has been a long time. When you experience happiness, it makes them feel like so long ago. But enough of this. I am worried that you live alone whereas the Tendo girls have each other. While you all already have com devices, I would like to install the same sensor net at your place as well," Cypher said.

"You would do that for me? But why, I'm one of the reasons Ranma left, and I sure as hell didn't treat him right in Nerima."

"You repented didn't you? That was good enough for Ranma and what's good for him is good for us. As such you will fall under our protection."

Ukyo blushed. "You know, none of you have been very forthcoming about where you come from. I mean, even if you can't talk about the war, can't you talk about your lives before the war?"

Cypher glanced at Ukyo sideways. "What if you're entire life revolved around war? What if the war started even before you were born and still continues until now?"

Ukyo didn't know what to say to that. But she did remember something. "Who is this Emperor that you revere so much? And I thought I heard Ranma call you a Space Marine along with a Jedi. Are the two the same thing?"

"Far from it. I was and still am a Space Marine, whose ultimate allegiance is to my Emperor and the Imperium he created. But I joined the Jedi Guard to uphold my debt to Andy Wong and also I saw a chance to help redress the honour of my Fallen brethren."

Ukyo kept quiet, wondering if Cypher was going to elaborate.

"Imagine a time, when humanity has spread through the stars and then suddenly, we're all split apart. For hundreds of years, humanity is isolated by space, unable to travel anywhere. We all descend into barbarism and degrade into medieval technology. No order, nothing to tie us back to Planet Earth. Most of us forgot our roots and were prey to other more advanced alien races and most of all, to our inner demons."

"I was born on such a world, Caliban. It was a beautiful world with thick forests and mountains but almost no wide body of ocean. In your terms, we lived like the Middle Ages of Europe in your ancient history. But the forests held ferocious creatures, warped by the forces of Chaos. The people were ruled by Knight Orders, Nobles who would once in awhile go out to exterminate a nearby creature. Because of those creatures, we live in fortresses of stone, ever terrified of the countryside and the horrors it held."

"My father was a member of such a Knight Order, merely called the Order. The Order was unique in that anybody could join and rewards were given out by meritocracy, not hereditary. I was once a stable boy before I became a squire and then, a Knight when I helped slay a creature when my Master died. One day, I accompanied the greatest Knight in The Order, a man named Luther, to go out and hunt. We came across a wild man, savage but devious, always evading us yet managing to steal any game we managed to kill. Eventually we caught him, some of us wanted to slay him for it is said that no man can live alone in the creature infested forests. But Luther saw something in that man and had it brought back to our fortress. That man was named Lion El' Johnson by Luther, an extraordinarily powerful man.

"Lion quickly adapted to our ways and together with Luther, became the most celebrated Knights in all of Caliban. They were inseparable and many considered them brothers in spirit, if not in blood. It was clear that Lion was not a normal person, for he assimilated knowledge far more speedier than anyone else, and within one year of being brought back to human society, he had become an educated gentleman, totally unrecognisable from the feral thing we found in the forests barely a year go. And on one particular hunt, he single handedly slew a monstrous lizard like creature which is the size of one of your Earth elephants by himself, armed with only a sword and bolt pistol. Eventually, the Order became the largest order of Knights on Caliban and then the two brothers proposed a holy crusade to exterminate the Chaos creatures throughout the land. That Crusade came to pass and with Luther's charisma and Lion's brilliant strategies and courage, our planet was cleansed of the monsters."

"It was then that the Emperor of Mankind came to Caliban. Nobody save himself knows his origins. He came from planet Earth on a Crusade to re-unite Humanity and had previously created twenty sons of his seed to lead his armies. Lion El' Johnson was one of his children, a Primarch created with strength and powers beyond that of normal humans. You ask what a Space Marine is. We are the Emperor's finest, genetically modified humans with capabilities far beyond normal humans, which include greater speed, strength, hearing and even the ability to digest Akane's cooking I'm told by Ranma. I remember seeing him, such a noble persona that I had not seen since Lion El' Johnson became educated in the ways of men. When the two men met, they instantly recognised each other as father and son and the joy of their reunion resulted in celebrations that lasted a week. At the end of that week, the Emperor offered Lion El' Johnson the command of one of his legions, the Dark Angels. The Dark Angels are genetically modified with the gene seed that originates from our Primarch meaning Lion. A gene seed is something like the genes that is carried down from parents to children so in this case, so that we're all like our Primarch in certain areas even though we are not his sons. Many of The Order were inducted into the Legion, including myself and became Space Marines. Then when the time came, Lion left Caliban, leaving Luther as the governor and protector of Caliban, along with many of our Order members who had become Space Marines. I remember being disappointed with not being chosen as one of those to go on the Crusade. And it is this disappointment that would lead many of my fellow Knights into road of damnation.

"As tales of Lion's victories grew, those of us remaining on Caliban became more jealous and disquieted with being left behind. None felt it more than Luther, sworn brother of Lion. He brooded more and more in private and eventually talked to none of us, save a few of his most trusted councillors. The peace of Caliban had been poisoned but none knew to what extent."

"Then news reached us of the terrible betrayal of Horus, the most beloved of the Emperor's sons, and Warmaster of all the Legions. Out of the 18 Space Marine Legions, fully half of them turned against our Emperor. They assaulted Holy Terra, our version of your planet Earth, nine legions against our Emperor who only had 3 Legions with him, the Imperial Fists, Blood Angels and a contingent of White Scars. Our Primarch, Lion was on the other side of the galaxy along with his erstwhile brother, Leman Russ of the Space Wolves. The two Primarchs disliked each other immensely but for the sake of their father, they put aside their differences and raced across the galaxy to save their father and Emperor."

"But it was too late. Horus had lured our Emperor into battling him in his own battleship. Reports of what actually happened are vague, but this much we know. The Emperor defeated Horus but suffered grievous wounds which rendered him in a coma. The Primarch of the Imperial Fists, Rogal Dorn found the Emperor and immediately had the comatose Emperor interred inside the Golden Throne, an immense complex life system. And he has remained there for 10,000 years."

"But is he alive? I mean, how can he be in a hospital for 10,000 years if he is alive?" Ukyo asked, astonished.

"Those who say that in the Imperium are immediately charged with heresy, tortured and killed by the Inquisition," Cypher replied. "But I do not believe so. For now I will tell you of another betrayal by another who was thought to have been noble and good."

"You may have already guesses that Luther would fall to the forces of Chaos. His jealousy and disappointment was all that was needed to turn him to worship the Chaos gods, and eventually, his taint spread to the rest of the Order and Space Marines on Caliban. Not all of us turned to worship the Chaos gods, in fact I think the only ones who truly worshipped them was Luther and a group of perhaps twenty Space Marines out of the thousand Space Marines left on Caliban. But we listened to Luther as he fed our jealousies and discontent, with rumour that Lion had been the one who purposely left us behind, to be robbed of our glory that was due to us. And then he said that the Lion had turned to Chaos and committed many atrocities during his terrible conquest in the Great Crusade. And we listened and believed Luther."

"And so when Lion returned to Caliban, exhausted and grieved beyond repair at the wounding of his father and Emperor, he found himself repulsed by our planetary guns. Yes, we were told that he was coming back to put himself as King of our planet and we did not want that. And so we fired at our brethren. This sealed our fate as Lion El' Johnson was said to have been overwhelmed with such terrible rage, that he bombed his homeworld Caliban for 5 days straight before leading an assault on us, who would forever be known, as the Fallen."

Tears now flowed from Cypher's eyes as he continued, "I remembered the bombing, the scouring of life from Caliban. The fortress monastery was safe as it was built to withstand such punishment but not the others. 6 million perished on Caliban that day. At the time, I felt that Luther's story was true, that the Lion had indeed turned to chaos. So when our former brothers, the Dark Angels assaulted us after the bombardment, I fought back with terrible rage, spilling the blood of those who were once my brothers, for 3 days straight."

"And then word reached me of terrible creatures of Chaos had appeared at the entrance to monastery feast hall, the largest hall in the monastery where the biggest gatherings and training were held. I was further enraged that Lion would do such a thing. But when I managed to reach the entrance, I was shocked to see Lion's Dark Angels fighting **_AGAINST _**a demon known as a Bloodthrister of Khorne. I was filled with terrible confusion at the moment, wondering why the Dark Angels under Lion's command was fighting a creature of chaos when they themselves had turned to chaos. The Bloodthirster was defeated and they turned their eyes on me. I slew them in quick succession and then, I was filled with terrible doubt that perhaps, it was Luther who had turned. I ran into the feast hall and saw our Primarch Lion El' Johnson fighting against his brother Luther. But it was not the Luther that we all knew. He had been warped into something so evil and abominable, that if it were not for his Order robes, he would have been unrecognizable. And moreover, he was fighting on equal grounds with Lion, whom no man or even Space Marine can match in battle."

"The weight of my sins fell unto my shoulders that day. I wept as I witnessed the titanic duel which in the end, should have resulted in the Lion's victory. But as he pointed his sword at Luther's throat, he hesitated. Some said it was this very hesitation that caused the Emperor to be nearly killed by Horus. And it was this same hesitation that allowed Luther to stab our Primarch in the gut."

"Lion's eyes widened but now instead of rage and hatred, it was now filled with pity, regret and remorse. Luther was shocked at the display of love and affection that Lion showed and only then, did Luther realise the depth of his sin. He madly scrambled away from Lion, to the darkest corner of the feast hall, muttering to Lion to forgive him."

"I could not bear it any longer and ran to my Primarch to try to tend to his wounds, but I knew I was too late. A gut wound is a slow death but almost inevitable and moreover, the weapon that Luther wielded seemed to eat away our Primarch's flesh even after being drawn out, like acid. Yet Lion did not show his pain, merely the grief of his fallen brother. But when he looked at me, I was shocked as he smiled."

**Author's note**

The feast hall resembles the feast hall of Edoras, the Golden Hall of Meduseld, house of the kings of Rohan as depicted in the Lord of the Rings.

**Flashback**

_Cypher stood in a massive feast hall, kneeling over the body of Lion El' Johnson. The Primarch stared at Cypher and to his astonishment, smiled._

_"So it wasn't true after all. Not all of you had fallen to chaos. If only I had known this sooner before I let my rage get the better of me. What is your name, boy?"_

_Boy? I was one of those who found him when he was running wild on Caliban and he still calls me boy? But there was a certain fondness in his heart._

"_C-Cypher."_

"_Well, then, young Cypher. I cannot do any more for this galaxy and our people. I ask you to take this," and he pushed the Lion Sword into my weakened grasp, "and when you re-emerge from the warp, you will under-take a task to redeem all of the Fallen and earn the Emperor's Forgiveness. Do not fail, Cypher, for they will depend on you the most. Yours will be a journey of pain and sorrow, with little happiness and joy, but when completed, shall be the greatest honour you can achieve. IT will hurt, Cypher, that much I promise._

"_You are brave, to attempt to find the truth," said Lion El'Jonson, "even if you know it would cost you your own life and how much it would have hurt. I bid you good fortune, Cypher. Remember our oath, and remember why this day came to pass. Do not allow anyone to repeat this error, please."_

_The Lion, pleading? I could not believe what I was hearing. I lowered my head, and tears borne of my sorrow that had rent my soul in twain by its sheer anguish of betrayal splashed upon the Lion Sword's great black blade._

"_Good-bye, Cypher. Do not forget what I have asked of you."_

**End flashback**

"After that, our planet was torn apart by the forces of chaos, who were enraged that Luther did not go through the whole betrayal, repenting at the last minute and gone insane. All of the Fallen Dark Angels, including myself were sucked into the Warp, which is like an alternate dimension that we use to travel faster than light. It was also the source of our psychic power and the innumerable creatures of chaos. It is like swimming in a vast ocean where you can hear the voices of thousands of beings, human and alien alike."

"It was there, while swimming in the vast ocean in the Warp, that I thought I heard my Emperor. His voice was sorrowful yet he calmed me as I frantically tried to regain control of my body in the Warp. He knew the terrible impact the betrayal would have on humanity and, like myself, blamed himself for it. But he was still the Emperor, leader and patriot who only sought to protect mankind from itself. And I was comforted, knowing deep in my heart, that the Emperor was alive. And that I had a goal: to go in front of my Emperor and ask for forgiveness of me and my Fallen Dark Angels. When the Warp finally spitted me out into the material realm, I discovered that 10,000 years had past."

"Since then, I have been fighting a battle of immense proportions. First I had to find what was left of the Fallen. Then I discovered that somehow, our betrayal had been kept a secret and the galaxy was none the wiser of Lion's death or the betrayal of Caliban, which was simply attributed to a chaos invasion. But I discovered that the true Dark Angels, the ones who never followed Luther, hunted the Fallen against all cost, even killing their fellow men if it meant capturing one of us. Those of us who were captured were forced to repent under extreme torture. None of the ones who were captured did and I heard, still suffer torture at the hands of the Dark Angels chapter chaplains who would save their souls," at this, Cypher snorted in disgust.

"For 40 years I laboured towards gathering the Fallen and trying to go to Terra where I hoped to infiltrate the Golden Throne. But as I penetrated deeper, the more difficult it became until it became all but impossible for me and my fellow Fallen. Moreover, the true Dark Angels had discovered my identity and existence and were on the constant lookout for me. They captured me a few times but always I escaped them. But the last straw came when I was captured by another group of Space Marines, the Black Templars. The Dark Angels ambushed the Black Templar group and demanded that I be handed to them. They complied but the moment I was received in their ship, the Dark Angels destroyed the Black Templar's ship to keep their knowledge of my existence a secret."

"I felt a terrible rage overcome me then and when the Dark Angels tried to apprehend me, I fought back with murderous rage, once again killing those who were probably the descendants of my brothers. At last, the Brother Captain of the Dark Angels company stood alone against me, but even he was no match for me. As I was about to strike him with my chain sword, Andy Wong appeared and held my hand."

**Flashback**

**"**_It is enough," a tall man said as he effortlessly held the swordhand from striking the Dark Angels Captain._

_Cypher looked back to see a man as tall as himself, dressed in simple clothing of a dark coat with a grey shirt with dark long pants, armed with only a sword by his side. His facial features were like that of the White Scars legion and he wore dark sunglasses. Cypher was still in a rage and his left hand, which held a bolt pistol whipped around to shoot at the stranger. The stranger did not move as the bullet was shot and bounced of his clothing. That woke Cypher from his rage and he looked at the man in astonishment._

_The man then disarmed Cypher from his sword and gun in one swift move. Cypher tried to fight him barehanded but the man was clearly superior. The fist fight ended with Cypher being lifted off the ground and slammed against the wall, the stranger's hand at his throat._

_"Who are you? Why did you come here? What do you want?" Cypher demanded._

_The stranger snorted. "Those are the questions I should be asking. But I'll settle for you answering me just one question: What do you want?"_

_Cypher was astonished and was about to say something defying when the stranger removed his glasses and looked straight into Cypher's eyes. And what Cypher saw he never forgot again. The depths of the stranger's eyes were deeper than the Warp, as black as the darkness of night in Caliban yet so deep and full of knowledge, like looking into the depths of an ocean, teeming with life uncounted yet could never be measured completely. And the eyes held something else that Cypher would not have believed someone would direct at him: pity. At the sight of this long forgotten emotion, Cypher looked at the bodies of the Dark Angels he had slain and cried. The tears flowed so hard that he didn't even notice the stranger releasing his hand and let Cypher sag to the floor, weeping over the deaths of his brother marines. For a long time he wept and then he looked at the stranger, who was tending to the other Brother Captain's wounds while he was unconscious. _

_"Who are you?" Cypher asked. _

_The stranger looked at Cypher. "My name is Andy Wong. I wish to help you. And ask for your help."_

**End flashback**

**"**I never did ask him how he found me. But he did and together, we undertook a quest to find ALL of the Fallen Dark Angels. And when those who were still free from the Dark Angels and free from chaos taint were gathered, we launched a grand operation that freed the rest of the Fallen Dark Angels from the prisons of the Dark Angels. Oh it was a great joy to once again see your fellow brothers who repented and shared the same grief and shame as you have. But it became clear that we could never go to Terra without a direct assault and serious firepower. The Dark Angels had heightened their alert as high as ever, and now our mobility were extremely limited. We could do nothing in our universe anymore."

"We turned to Andy Wong for advice but he too admitted that he could not think of anything that did not invite bloodshed. Through our experience, we knew that the Dark Angels were perfectly capable of doing anything to capture us or prevent the secret of our existence from coming out, even the destruction of another Space Marine Chapter. So going to another Chapter to obtain their aid was deemed too risky. But it was at this time that I remembered his earlier request for my aid. It was then I learned that he was from another alternate universe and that universe was being ravaged by a horror that outstripped even those my universe."

"Me and my fellow Fallen Dark Angels then undertook an oath to serve Andy Wong, who revealed himself to be a Jedi, a member of an ancient military order who once served as protector of his galaxy but had since then fallen into near extinction, and was about to face extinction again. Our hearts went out to the man who saved all of our lives and gave us hope again. You probably would think that Andy Wong did this all just to enlist our aid in his war, which was not even our own. But we did not think so. We trusted Andy Wong, who had fought alongside us to rescue our brethren. During that time, we also launched many decisive operations to disrupt the Traitor Legions that still plagued the Imperium. I have seen him fight demons and daemons and I remember most his patience and calmness when fighting. He killed not because they were demons or traitors, but because of their deeds. In short, he never hated them for what they ARE. And it was because of this that the Fallen pledged ourselves to his cause until his quest was fulfilled before returning to the Imperium."

"And now that war is over and the Fallen and myself are preparing to go back to our home universe. But we will not forget out bonds of friendship with the Jedi or our adopted universe. As such, I followed Ranma together with the other Captains to help restore order to his life. It is the least I can do not only for Ranma but for Andy Wong, who loved Ranma like his son also wanted to make Ranma happy."

The two finally reached the Okonomiyaki shop. Ukyo had shed tears at a few areas of Cypher's story, especially when Lion had given the quest to Cypher. She stood before Cypher and to his enormous surprise, hugged him.

"Thank you for sharing your story Cypher. Please come again tomorrow. I think I still owe you an Okonomiyaki."

Cypher tentatively reached his hand around Ukyo's body and patter her back, completely lost in what to do. "I'll take up that offer. And thank you for listening. I would have thought you would never have believed me though."

Ukyo looked up at his eyes. "Somehow, I've believed everything you've said to me since you came to Nerima. Goodnight Cypher," she said as she released him and went into the restaurant.

Cypher looked into the sky and noted the beauty of the half moon that currently shone into the night. "What is it that I'm feeling? Why is it that it took Andy Wong a year to finally get the story of the Fallen out of me yet I've just told Uyko before even a day of meeting her?"

The moon had no answer and Cypher sighed, then sped towards the hotel that the Captains were spending the night. If Andy Wong had met him and noticed Cypher's expression, he would have said that at that moment, the Fallen Dark Angel was at peace.

To be continued.

Well, there you have it, a brief history of the Warhammer 40,000 universe in a nutshell. Of course official sources don't exactly say that Cypher is a good guy, in fact when you play the game, it is the chaos Space Marines who use Cypher as a hero unit. But there are a lot of implications that Cypher is in fact a good guy. He does in fact carry the sword of his fallen Primarch, Lion El' Johnson, but never ever uses it. At least not till the Yuuzhan Vong war.

Until the next chapter, I bid you good night. Next chapter will be light, happy but still a little chaotic as the Captains, Tendos and Ukyo enjoy the weekend with only a slight interruption by Shampoo and Cologne. Slight…. Yeah right.

BWAHAHAHA! Evil cliffhanger………


	7. Chapter 5: Sino Japanese War

**Author's rants**

Sorry for the long wait people. I hope the side story about Cypher was satisfying enough. I'm going to experiment if I can write a happy story for once. So far my chapters are filled with signs and portents of the coming darkness. Let's just see if I can write something that's, well, wacky Ranma humor.

**Chapter 5: Sino-Japanese War**

For the first time in two years, Kasumi sang as she made breakfast. Last night was easily the best night in her life since her mother died. She sang when she woke up. She sang as she took a bath. And she sang as she made a better than usual breakfast for her family, which at the moment, still included Genma. Akane was still doing her morning jog as she made breakfast and she knew would arrive in time to see the breakfast spread.

Soun as usual, had woken up at his usual time of 8am, did some light exercises in the dojo then sat in his usual seat smoking and reading the newspaper. As usual, he was oblivious to his surroundings, even his daughter's merrier than normal attitude. Yesterday had all been a bad dream, he had decided. He dreamt that Ranma had came back and stolen all of his three daughters from him. But it was clearly a nightmare because his dear daughters were still at home.

Nabiki trudged down the stairs groggily, as she always had a hard time getting up and always needed Kasumi's special coffee brew which somehow did NOT contain caffeine. Good old Kasumi, Nabiki thought to herself. She was still in her baggy pajamas which did not show a hint of her normally sexy figure as she sat at the table. Kasumi then came in bearing a large tray of food along with Akane, who had just came back from jogging, holding another tray. Nabiki became wide awake as she saw Kasum's spread. True that Kasumi NEVER cooked anything that tasted less than delicious but what Nabiki saw was better than usual. This morning it was an English breakfast with 5 thick sausages, scrambled eggs, bull's eye eggs, a whole loaf of white bread that had been meticulously sliced, two jars of jam, one of marmalade and strawberry and strips of crisp bacon. And to top it all off, a jug of chocolate milk.

Kasumi smiled serenely. "Breakfast is served," and the rest of the Tendo household ate with a great relish. Kasumi had even cooked a little extra to prevent Genma from overeating his portion and taking others. Her good mood even extended to Genma because whatever his failings, he had managed to produce a son greater than any other she knew.

The three sisters had the tact of not talking about Ranma or any of his companions that breakfast. All three enjoyed the moment of peace and would rather be out of the house before the chaos hit the fan. It was a lovely morning and despite Akane's misgivings about peaceful days, the three sisters were determined to enjoy it.

**Flashback**

_During the dinner, Kasumi made a most unusual suggestion: that they take a day trip somewhere to enjoy themselves and get to know each other better._

_"But Ne Chan, I hate to be the kill joy but aren't our entrance exams coming soon?" Akane said, she was still somewhat troubled as she was a two year ronin already._

_"Akane-chan, I'm sure you're doing your best, and I must say, we've all been studying too hard. I sure could need one. And the rest of you need to see Japan!" she said excitedly._

_"Your history doesn't concern me much. Besides, we've got better things to do rather than..." Hitsugaya started._

_"BEACH! BEACH! BEACH!" Jaina shrieked to everyone's surprise. "Oh by the stars, I haven't felt sand on my feet for 10 years! Oh please say you're taking us to the beach."_

_It wasn't just the Tendos, even the stoic and super serious Captain Hitsugaya Toshirou, Tactical Genius and Army Siege Specialist, had his mouth open at the sight before them. Although Jaina, like Ranma was not touched by the toll of decades of warefare on their shoulders, the reaction that Jaina was showing was positively: girly._

_"The beach it is then," Kasumi said as the other captains nodded, not quite knowing how to react._

**End Flashback**

This good mood and atmosphere would last 3 days until Saturday finally came. It was the most peaceful and happy week the Tendo girls and even Ukyo had in a long time. Little did they know it would be a long time before they get peaceful days again soon.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

If anyone from their native universes saw what the four captains were doing in the Nerima mall the next day, they would have all either died of shock or simply gone insane.

The four banes of the Yuuzhan Vong, heroes of the Galactic Alliance and saviours of thousands of worlds, were shopping for swimming attire.

It was in this state that 2nd Jedi Captain Hyugga Neji, found his fellow captains: in various states of undress. The dour Captain, who almost had no humour thought the world had gone mad as Cypher begged a nearby store to cut their Camel Cargo Pants into something that would resemble a pair of swimming shorts but the manager stubbornly refused to cut his expensive merchandise to pieces.

"What. …… the…….. hell……. is……. going……. On?" he said loudly.

Hitsugaya Toshirou, now dressed in Hawaii shirts, Bermuda shorts and a straw hat shrugged. "Did you know that Jaina loves the beach?"

Neji's eyes widened. "No, she never mentioned it."

"Amazing the things you learn about your comrades even in times of peace," the stoic white haired captain said. "Speaking of which, go get one yourself. You can't go about the beach in those robes."

**Author's note**

Neji is the only one wearing a captain's attire exactly like Bleach style, meaning a black kimono inside with a white hakama (coat) on the outside.

**End author's note**

Neji snorted. "I don't feel the need to sun bathe very much thank you."

"Then roast in that coat for all we care. I foretell that today is going to be very hot, especially when we're all heading for Okinawa."

"And how are we getting to Okinawa? None of you can teleport….." Neji suddenly found himself surrounded by 3 other captains. "Big brother Neji is going to be ever so sweet and teleport us and the Tendo sisters aren't you?" Jaina said in her bikini while cracking her knuckles. A gesture repeated by Ranma and Cypher.

Neji rolled his eyes. "Great way of asking people. I haven't even had the honour of meeting the Tendo girls, two of which have snared the hearts of two of our number."

"You will. Now hurry up and get some new clothes, even in Japanese clothes, you stick out," Cypher said.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

At 11am, the Tendos, Ukyo and Captains had assembled at the Furinkan High teacher's lounge again. The three girls politely greeted Neji, who even when dressed in a shirt and jeans, managed to look formal. "Well ladies, if you ever doubted our magic powers, you're about to get a first hand account for it."

The eight of them gathered in a circle while Neji stood in the circle. He took out a cylinder which, when he shook it, straightened out to be 5 feet and he pierced the sharper end into the ground. The other hand looked like it had a tiny claw at the end, to which Nej put a blue gem the size of a goose egg into it. The blue gem glowed as Neji started moving his hands, performing intricate hand seals (**Author's note: Naruto style) **and then muttered an incantation that only the Captains understood. The next thing they knew was that their surroundings started shimmer and they found themselves from the teacher's lounge, to a small hill that overlooked the beach.

"Wow….," said the three Tendo sisters and Ukyo who were just beginning to understand that a few seconds ago, they had been in Nerima and now they were in Okinawa, several hundred miles away.

"Then without any further ado, let's hit the beach!" Jaina, who was dressed in a flowery tank top and shorts ran with inhuman speed towards the beach. Quickly, each girl grabbed on to a Captain, who ran to match Jaina's speed. The diminutive Hitsugaya was carrying Nabiki, Kasumi was latched unto Neji, Ukyo was hanging from Cypher's broad back and of course, Ranma swept Akane in his arms as they ran to Jaina.

Like days in the summer, the beaches of Okinawa were packed though not to the brink of overcrowding. The Taichous and girls managed to find a nice spot for themselves and promptly stripped to show their latest wares. Neji refused to let go off his clothes though. Jaina sported a simple dark green one piece swimsuit as did Akane whose one was sunflower yellow. Ukyo and Nabiki both wore skimpy bikinis that barely covered their pussies and nipples and this even made the stoic Hitsugaya and battle hardened Cypher raise their eyebrows. Both were fairly conservative men and their outfits were to say the least, outrageous. Still, neither could deny they were attractive.

**Author's note**

I think some of you might remember a Ranma beach episode where the whole family got crashed by the other fiancées, a gigantic cat, and a strange crossdresser that hopped around in a post box. What they wore is similar here.

**End Author's note**

But somehow, nobody could compare to Kasumi's elegant but simple figure. Even Neji, who was by far the oldest and had seen many of the greatest beauties in the universe, alien or human, considered Kasumi a work of art. She wore a simple green bikini, not so thin as to show her ass and most of her breasts, in fact as bikinis go, hers were fairly conservative. It did not have a strand to tie behind her neck though. If Neji had to give his professional opinion, the reason was simply Kasumi wasn't trying to be beautiful, and so the beauty just came naturally to her.

Though nobody could see it, Neji smiled in his mind's eye. _I really pity you not being here today my Lord. This would have been a sight to turn any Sith Lord into the light, _he thought to himself.

Even Jaina was surprised at how stunning Kasumi looked. Fortunately she was never one for looks so did not envy Kasumi in the slightest.

And it wasn't just the Taichous that were captivated as Kasumi took her sister's arms and headed towards the water. Practically every male from age 3 to 91 was watching Kasumi and only Kasumi as the girls headed into the water. And to Hitsugaya's alarm, his telepathic mind began to read a whole lot of thoughts directed at Kasumi, and not all of them were innocent, in fact, some warranted investigation and perhaps a little torture to prevent anything from happening.

Cypher sighed, dressed in an oversize shorts which were in fact cargo pants that he salvaged from a garbage can behind the store and a Hawaiian shirt that was too small so he had to leave it open. "Now that is a woman who would have been worthy of our Lord, and my Emperor."

"Indeed. But when Lord Wong first met Kasumi, he said that she was no more than 9 years old. He couldn't have told that she would become a beauty. Our Lord is many things but pre-cognition isn't his greatest skill," Neji said.

Ranma said, "Which goes to say, you never know what's going to happen, no matter how well you read the future. Remember what Andy told us that Master Yoda always said? _Always in motion is the future, difficult to see_. I hope Andy joins us soon. Somehow I don't feel right enjoying ourselves when he is doing all the work."

"Then lets not waste his efforts to let us have fun," Jaina said as she speedily blew up a beach ball. With lightning speed, she sped to a range of 40 yards and aimed at Cypher. It hit Cypher square in the face which caused the other Captains to laugh and then started a game of "Monkey Catch" with Cypher in the middle.

They took the game in the water, where it was more difficult to move, well not for the Captains but they were limiting their powers to the point of being normal that day. Poor Hitsugaya then found for the first time, just how limiting his height had made him as he frantically dashed here and there for the ball which kept evading him as everyone passed it to each other when he became the monkey. They were playing in water at waist height, which meant they could still jump but to Hitsugaya, the water was neck deep. It took quite a bit of control to stop himself from swearing as Cypher, who was the tallest of the bunch just held the ball in his hand, while Hitsugaya frantically tried to jump from the water but he just didn't have enough leverage without using chi or the Force. In the end, he only got it because after one hour of him being the monkey, everyone was laughing so hard that they forgot about the ball as it flew towards the air. Then Nabiki declared it was time for a picnic before Hitsugaya could say that it was Nabiki's turn to be monkey. The group left Hitsugaya who almost popped a few veins as he held the beachball as a float, as he had finally floated away to a point where his feet could no longer reach the ground.

Trust Kasumi to pack a delicious luncheon. It was enough to even Ranma. For Ranma, it was truly like returning home after a hard day's work but Captains like Hitsugaya and Cypher had been at war for their entire lives and as such, had never known home cooked food. It was a marvelous spread of ham and lettuce sandwiches, hard boiled eggs, cold chicken salad, a few inari rice dumplings, and for some reason, plenty of Pocky Candy. But what caught Ranma's eye was a small bento that came in the basket. And for a moment, his heart feared the worst as Akane took it and presented it to him. Cypher, Hitsugaya, Neji and Cypher wondered why Ranma looked so tense all of a sudden.

"Umm, Ranma what's up with you?" Cypher asked puzzled.

"Anou, Ranma, I made something for you this morning," Akane said, confirming his fears.

"Gee, uh, Akane……" Ranma stuttered.

Kasumi who was behind Akane winked at Ranma, making him suspicious. Of all the things he learnt about the Force, reading minds was not one of them though.

Akane's eyes narrowed. "Try it at least Ranma? I promise to take your critics seriously. AFTER I pummel you of course."

And so Ranma's fate was sealed, or so he thought. He tentatively opened the bento and to his horror, it wasn't curry rice, the one thing Akane knew how to cook well. It was just simple fried rice with peas, carrots, corn, anchovies and prawns. _Well, at least it ain't moving, _he thought. He looked fearfully at Akane and again, caught Kasumi's wink, wondering what that was. Slowly, he poked his spoon and scooped up some rice while Nabiki and Ukyo held their breath. Hitsugaya, Neji, Cypher and Jaina looked at each other.

'_What is it with this heavy atmosphere?'_ all four captains thought.

Ever so slowly he brought the spoon in his mouth and to the four captains, it was like the trip through hyperspace just before the Final Battle of Corruscant, when everyone was so tensed up for the coming battle. He brought the food in his mouth and Ukyo just closed her eyes while Nabiki's ice-queen expression broke to one of sympathy.

Then Ranma chewed. And chewed. And he chewed some more, ever so slowly. Ukyo opened her eyes and was shocked to see Ranma chewing with such a serious face. Actually, she was surprised that Ranma was still alive at that point.

And then, to the two girls utter amazement, he swallowed it.

Only then did he look at everyone else.

"Itadakimasu," he said nonchalantly.

And then he used the spoon to practically wolf down the fried rice.

All the girls except Kasumi and Jaina thought they had just witnessed the second coming of Jesus.

"He likes my cooking," Akane said, trying to convince herself of the magnitude of her actions.

And then, while Ranma was wolfing down the rice, he found himself in an Amazon's Death Glomp. Only it wasn't Shampoo who was giving the glomp, it was Akane. The girl was crying tears of joy while Ranma laughed, finally discarding his serious expression to enjoy the food and also the glomp of his tempermental fiancée.

"Baka, were you really asking for my mallet with that act?" she asked.

"Bah, no women can resist the Saotome charm you know. No matter how much I insulted you, you would have fallen in love with me in the end," he boasted.

"Oh right, and see where that charm has gotten you know. Four fiancées and a mad swordsman after your girl half."

All of a sudden, Nabiki froze. She looked at Ranma and suddenly realized something.

"Ranma, you, you, you….. YOU DIDN'T CHANGE!!!"

And so he didn't. Somehow the two years he had been away, everyone forgot that he was suppose to change when doused with cold water into a girl. But when they were bathing in the sea, Ranma hadn't changed.

This time, Kasumi really did look surprised as it didn't occur to her, nor did it occur to Ukyo as well.

"You're cured! Oh congratulations Ranma!" Ukyo, Kasumi and Akane were now showering Ranma with praises.

"Uh, not exactly girls. I'm still cursed but I can control it now, like when I was in the water, I was really devoting 10 of my concentration to keep myself from changing."

"Well, it'll certainly help keep Kuno of your back," Nabiki said.

Ranma smiled then stood up, took up a bottle of cold water and poured it over his body. "Ah, its so good to feel cold water in a guy's body again," he said as the water ran down his well toned and muscled body. Akane sighed as she looked at her fiancée, who was no doubt, one of the finest specimens of men yet. The whole water running down the body had the intended effect and most of the surrounding girls swooned at the sight of Ranma's wet body, including a certain Amazon warrior women, her elder and a half-blind man.

Ranma turned completely white when he realized what he saw. The Tendos and Ukyo also paled as they saw what Ranma saw. The four captains followed their gaze and saw a voluptuous Chinese woman with purple hair in a purple bikini that might as well have been made out of string. The Chinese woman was filled with crazed lust and her aura practically screamed SEX at Ranma.

"Airen?"

"Shh hhh shhhh shhh Shampoo?"

"AAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!

"GYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Ranma Saotome, 4th Jedi Captain of the 4th division, specializing in healing and battle support, also considered the 3rd most powerful captain, ran for his life with a crazed bimbo hot on his heals. And somehow, the bimbo was matching his speed, which was already nearly at "Shunpo" or Flash Stepping speed. This was no ordinary feat and caused the four captains to look at Shampoo. Their chase caused a complete ruckus over the beach as they plowed down umbrellas, beach towels, ran over women sunbathing over the sand which promptly added their boyfriends into chasing Ranma, and God knows how many people Ranma and Shampoo managed to annoy in their chase.

The four captains then, saw first hand the chaos caused by Ranma's fiancée problems. They saw the boy with glasses also join in the chase, screaming for Ranma's death. The old woman whom Jaina recognized as Cologne hopped over to Jaina.

"So my instincts were right. You were up to something when you came to my restaurant," the old fossil spoke.

Jaina instantly became serious. "For the sake of my comrade and friend Ranma, I wanted to give him the peace that has been denied from him for so long. All I did was give him time to meet his friends peacefully."

"And even that was interrupted by the one known as Hibiki Ryoga," Cypher said.

"You've met him? I was worried about his erratic chi the last time I saw him but that was months ago. That fool Genma had been teaching him to use the Shi Shi Hokodan wrongly and by the time I found out, Ryoga was lost again."

"Your analysis is correct. My my, so you are the great and formidable Amazon elder that Ranma speaks so highly off," remarked Hitsugaya.

Cologne looked surprised. Ranma praising her?

The four captains stood up and introduced themselves to Cologne. By that time, Cologne had already guessed that the chi shockwave had been from these 4, maybe more individuals. And perhaps Ranma as well. Her blood ran cold as she begun to think how much more Ranma had improved over the years.

Meanwhile, Ranma was now running so fast that he was practically running on water, with Shampoo hot on his trail. "Airen come to me! Airen come to me!" she shrieked.

"Damnit Shampoo, I'll admit I'm glad to see you but I am not your Airen!" Ranma yelled.

"If you not Airen, why defeat Shampoo? Why not say not love Shampoo? You not say don't love, means love to Shampoo then. Logic?"

Ranma had to admit, it was. He had been stringing his fiancées for too long. And now it had to end.

He stopped dead in his tracks, right in front of their picnic spot. As Shampoo jumped to give him a glomp, he grappled her and wrestled her into a kneeling position. Then he pushed her away from him.

Shampoo was thoroughly confused. Why did her Airen push her away?

Then to everyone's shock, including the crowd that had been chasing them earlier, Ranma got on his knees and kowtowed to Shampoo.

"I'm sorry Shampoo. I'm sorry you have to hear it now but I guess, I've been putting it off for far too long now. I don't love you Shampoo. I love Akane. And moreover, I don't want to be an Amazon. Not now, not ever," he finished.

Shampoo looked at Ranma in a mixture of shock, anger and depression as her mind slowly absorbed Ranma's words. Ranma saw murderous rage go over her for awhile as she extracted a bonbouri out of nowhere.

"Do as you will Shampoo. I deserve it," he said before the Tendos and Ukyo could grasp his meaning. Everyone except the captains and Nabiki shouted when Shampoo brought up the bonbouri and swing it. But just as it reached his face, the hand stopped. Shampoo collapsed on the ground shaking with grief and fear.

Cologne hopped over to Shampoo and tried to console her. She looked at Ranma sadly. "Boy, you have no idea what you have done. From now on, the Amazons are your enemies."

Ranma bowed his head. "You may consider me your enemy but I don't. And deep in your heart, you don't too. Rest assured that now I'm back, I'll devote my time to finding an honourable exit out of this engagement."

Cologne nodded. "Its nice to see you again Ranma. Good to have you back."

"The feeling's mutual Elder."

Jaina moved over to Shampoo. "C'mon girl, let's get you cleaned up," she said soothingly to Shampoo. Jaina took out some serviettes to dab Shampoo's eyes.

"By the way, where are you all staying?" Cologne asked.

"Hotel Okinawa," Nabiki answered.

"What a coincidence, we're there too. Perhaps its our turn to have a long talk with Ranma since you all have already had 4 days to talk."

Ranma bowed his head. "I would be honoured, Elder Cologne.

To be continued.

Not quite as long as I would like it to be, but I'm getting tired and I want to submit this before I sleep. I hope my attempt at humour was good enough but I think I'll focus on the serious side from now on. Darkness is coming, and Happosai may not be the only dark force to contend with. For the True Dark Angels will stop at nothing to capture the Fallen and will Ukyo pay the price of friendship with the foremost of the Fallen? Or will the entire planet Earth in Ranma universe pay the price for being touched by the Fallen? Signs and portents to come.

Until then, goodnight.


	8. Chapter 6: How to ditch an Amazon

**Author's rants**

Sorry for the late update. I hope you won't be bored as this is still quiet time for Ranma and gang. The coming war will probably come in Chapter 8 when all hell breaks loose. I plan one more chapter of peace for Ranma, Akane and Kasumi before Andy Wong returns with darkness approaching fast.

I hope those of you who read this give some time to review the chapter. And by review, I really mean review, not just one sentence comments. Thank you to all who have given me their thoughts on the story, such as Zoko, PPMKatie, Happosai Sama, ss4-link and Matrias who have taken the time to comment on how the story is going and what they would like to see in future. In particular, to Happosai Sama, who has reminded me of Ranma's mother, Nodoka. I admit I didn't write this fic with her in mind at all, but I realise it is a mistake and she is indeed a very important character to Ranma. So rest assured, Ranma will meet his mother.

Anyway, without further ado, Chapter 6 for your pleasure and entertainment.

**Chapter 6: How to ditch an Amazon.**

Nabiki had booked two first class suites, one for the Taichous and one for the Tendos and Ukyo. Both were next to each other and could be access each other via a door connecting both rooms. For safety's sake, it had been decided earlier that Jaina would sleep with the girls. They had little choice since Jaina was the only woman Taichou in the group. The Amazons also took a suite a few rooms apart from theirs. Mouse was to stay at a normal class room while Shampoo and Cologne stayed in one of the suites.

After that little encounter on the beach, they had travelled to the hotel and checked in to their rooms. Ranma sighed as he shed his clothes and put on a towel. "Things were going so great, and now in Okinawa of all places, I have to meet the Amazons."

"You needn't worry too much about them. Their Elder Cologne seems reasonable enough. Maybe all you need is to use that head of yours for once instead of your fists. You've already gotten over the first barrier, owning up your feelings to Shampoo. Now we're going to have to negotiate your release without you having to kill her and any other Amazon Elder that tries to enforce that law," Neji said.

"You think I haven't been thinking of this darn engagement? Its been on my mind ever since the war ended and I finally realized that I'll be going home. Hell, even Ukyo's engagement hasn't been solved, the argument has just been put aside for the moment."

Cypher put his hand on Ranma's shoulder. "Ukyo's problem is easy to solve actually. Just find the Okonomiyaki Cart and return the dowry, plus reparations for the breaking of the agreement to Ukyo's father. That will at least make them absolve the blood oath and permit Ukyo to return home. Then we can try to settle the engagement on another level. Perhaps by taking Ukyo as your students, it would be a beneficial agreement to make Uyko improve her martial arts and everyone would be happy. But the key to this is that the reparations must come from Genma who broke the engagement. Genma must be the one to apologise and ultimately, pay with his own wallet."

Ranma snorted. "Fat chance, the fat fool would never apologise let alone pay the reparations. Moreover, he has never saved a single cent in his life."

"Then we'll just have to MAKE him work for the money when he comes back. Or we could offer him as a sacrificial lamb to the Kuonjis. Let them kill him instead of you," Hitsugaya said.

"Sorry Shirou, but nothing he did will ever make me doom him to his death. I'll settle for him working his debt off. I'll probably have to loan him the amount first," replied Ranma.

"But the matter of Amazons is not easy to settle. I beat her fair and square as a girl, and then I still beat her when I was a guy. That's just within their laws and as I was in China at the time, I was and still am bound in their laws. Nothing short of a political intervention will prevent me from marrying into the Amazons. I just don't know what to do right now."

"Let things come one at a time. For now, we're still here to for R and R. C'mon, lets get cleaned up, we got a dinner with the Amazons in half an hour's time," Jaina reminded them.

Xxxxxxxxx

That night, Ranma requested to talk with the Amazons in private, even without Akane and Nabiki. "I'm sorry Akane, but I must handle this on my own."

"Oh no you don't, your not going to get yourself in trouble again. Besides, Cologne will want to talk to me about our new engagement as well. Its as much my business as well," Akane said.

Ranma opened his mouth but Jaina said, "She's right, stop trying to bear the burdens of your love life from now on. She is for better or worse, your bride to be and together you must face whatever challenges to your marriage together."

Ranma sighed. "Alright Akane, I guess I'll need someone to help me not lose my temper."

Moments later, Ranma and Akane were seated opposite Cologne with Mouse and Shampoo by Cologne's both sides. Mouse as usual was glaring daggers at Ranma while Shampoo eyes were red enough to be like Yoruichi's in her true form. This caused Ranma's heart to go out to Shampoo but there was no turning back now.

"Well, son-in-law, I see you have changed much yet changed none. Do my eyes deceive me or do you look older than just two years since I last saw you?"

Ranma looked at Cologne. "It's been a much longer time for me, Elder, fifteen years in fact. But before we get into that, I don't suppose you know what happened before I left."

"Ah yes, your supposedly REAL engagement to Tendo Akane. Who would have thought that the end of your wedding would be the beginning of your engagement. Nabiki wasn't kidding when she negotiated the price of these information, not least of which she made me promise not to expose this secret to the Amazon Elders back home. Otherwise we would have hunted you to the ends of the Earth."

Ranma snorted. "You would not have found me because I wasn't on Earth between then and four days ago. But after the whole wedding mess, I couldn't stand it anymore. In the quiet time that followed, I finally thought out my feelings and concluded that of all the girls that were after me, only Akane was worthy of me. But at the same time, was I worthy for her? And that's when I found the answer that night."

"Shampoo not understand why Ranma like kitchen destroyer. Shampoo better cook, better fighter, better body…." Shampoo stuttered.

"You never asked whether I liked you Shampoo, plain and simple. And it wouldn't have mattered. One way, you were going to drag me back to China as your husband which is no better than a slave in the Amazon village from what I heard. Did you ever think of how I would think of that life? Have you?" Ranma demanded.

"Shampoo did not think matter. Ranma never say don't like so Shampoo must be Ranma wife."

Ranma sighed. "In this I am to blame. I didn't want to hurt you by saying that I did NOT love you. I never did. No matter how sexier you are than Akane, or how much better your cooking is, you never asked me to be your husband. You were FORCING me to be your husband. As for your laws, next time, WARN every stranger that comes to the village of the law for heaven's sake. I did not know your laws and you never bothered to explain them properly. I'll admit that pops and I were only concerned for our own stomachs when we came to the village but even then, are you so confident that you are the top of the food chain that you can instantly assume that Shampoo would defeat me and not have to give me the kiss of death?"

"In the last fifteen years, I have seen powers far beyond the realm of martial arts. Powers that would make you sick when you see the effects. I had to learn firearms training, heavy armour training, demolitions, assassination techniques and many other skills that does not have anything to do with martial arts to survive. I know now that even now, at the height of my power there are still things in the dark places that I do not know that can devour me. And so I, like my Master who taught me for the last fifteen years, no longer underestimate anything that comes in my way, not you, not Shampoo, not Mouse, hell not even Kuno. But are you all so close minded that it never occurred to you that outside your village there are other powers as great as yours?"

"Don't insult me **_Ranma_**," Cologne hissed, surprising Akane and Ranma as she always referred to Ranma as son-in-law. "I know very well the points you are bringing up and they are valid. I did propose a revision to the law concerning the kiss of death and kiss of marriage. But unfortunately, only two including myself out of a council of five others are in like mind. The rest are far more conservative than you know. You should know that ever since you left, the entire village was cordoned off to the outside world to prevent others from falling to the same trap as you did."

"Are you mad? Don't you know how dangerous isolating yourselves is? I know that you have at least one enemy clan, the Musk living in the same area. And what about the official government in Beijing? I don't know what your political relations is but sooner or later, Beijing is going to try to assimilate you," Akane said.

Cologne replied, "One way or the other, you have to come back to the village to plead your case. Its been out of my hands since you left two years ago. Now that your back, you must be responsible for your mistakes."

"Oh just great, back into the mouth of the tiger," Ranma groaned.

Cologne sighed and leaned forward on the table. "Ranma, do not think I am entirely unsympathetic to you. In case you haven't noticed, you are my student too, and I care for my wards even though I regarded you as a son-in-law then. And I must say that I've grown very fond of you. Your courage and honour has not gone unnoticed to me and I personally, would never have enforced that rule on you. But Shampoo would not heed my advice to court you normally. And she has paid the price with you leaving and returning to reject her."

"Yes, you insolent dishonourable dog. You've let Shampoo on a merry chase only to let her run into a dead end after four years!" Mouse suddenly piped up. Everyone looked at him, extremely annoyed but their intervention was not needed as all of a sudden, Mouse's head was slammed against the table by the knee of Shihouin Yoruichi, with a stiletto knife pressed against his neck.

"You dare question the honour of Ranma, who has also come you your aid many times before?" she hissed, as Mouse went very white at the feeling of cold metal against his neck.

"Please tell me this is not another of your friends. I do not want another Shi Shi Hokodan fired at me when my back is turned."

"As a matter of fact, he isn't but again, he's not worth killing. Sad to say, he has absolutely no impact on our current dealings. Even Akane can defeat Mouse I think," Ranma said, making Akane surprised at his comparison.

"But wait a minute, if you're here, then where's….."

"Ahem."

Ranma turned to see Ryoga behind him. And for once, there was no accompanying scream of '**_Ranma, prepare to die'_**. He was dressed neatly in is usual garb with none of the dirt and grime as usual, even his bandanna was cleaned. Ranma blinked. Somehow, a clean and subdued Ryoga seemed as alien as Nabiki crying.

"Yeoh Ryoga, Sa Shi Bi ri." (Long time no see in Japanese)

Ryoga looked down on his feet and put one foot over the other. "Uh, Ranma, I'm sorry for a lot of things. Not least is blasting your friend through a wall. And everything else before that. You know, being a jerk, jumping in on your dates with Akane, fighting with you for no good reason…" he started to say all the things that he had wronged Ranma, which was quite a lot.

This made Ranma smile a true smile and he stood up and embraced his friend. "So Ryoga, up for a sparing when we get back to Nerima? Believe me, I've got plenty of moves to show you and teach you," he said joyfully to his friend.

Ryoga looked extremely startled then he also smiled and hugged Ranma back. "Tell me something, you still love Akane?"

"Yes I do Ryoga, yes I do."

"Then you really are gay. Yoruichi is the best looking babe I've ever seen, and you're saying in the fourteen years you've known her, you still only think of Akane? Why, Akane's a pig compared to Yo yo yo yor……," Ryoga trailed off as he suddenly saw Akane's aura which glowed bright red as she approached him, with a mallet in hand.

"RYOGA NO BAKA!" and she let loose her mallet, hitting him into the fountain. Ranma realised in horror what Akane had done and quickly threw his lightsaber into the fountain then activated it while it was in the water. This made the fountain boil instantly and out jumped a still human Ryoga, shouting his head off as he was scalded by the boiling water.

"It appears Ranma, that your foot in mouth disease has been transferred to someone else," Cologne remarked as Ryoga tried to blow his whole body to coolness.

Hitsugaya went towards Ryoga and gave him a little blow. The blow was as cold as the Arctic wind and Ryoga went from instant hot to freezing cold without getting wet. He shivered in cold and Jaina took pity on him and dropped him a jacket that she had been wearing.

"Ahem, I think we had better get back to our discussion," Ranma said.

"Pardon me Captain, but what do I do with this?" Yoruichi pressed the side of the stiletto knife against Mouse neck, causing a little whimper to come out of him.

Ranma looked at Cologne and she sighed. "Mouse, apologise to Ranma at once. And you better spend more time training since your always being defeated by girls."

"That treacherous witch surprised me. If she were to face me face to face…" Mouse started to rant.

"Then there would be nothing left of you to take home. Yoruichi is beyond your class, perhaps up to Cologne's class. Do not think just because she can attack from behind does not mean she can't attack from the front," Ranma said. "Now I demand an apology otherwise I'll turn you over to Yoruichi."

Yoruichi let out a feral growl and Mouse went even whiter. "I apologise, Ranma sama, for my insolence. Please forgive me."

Ranma sighed. "If only that was borne out of sincere regret, not fear. Yoruichi let him go."

"As you wish, Taichou," she said as she released Mouse who instantly fainted from the tension he had been feeling.

"Now back to the business at hand," Ranma said as he and Akane resumed their seats. Yoruichi stood behind Ranma in attendance.

Cologne said, "I believe our discussion is private. Your friend Yoruichi should leave us."

"What is said to me, she'll know later. She is my lieutenant and I trust her with all my secrets. Do not worry. No force on this Earth or the next can force her to betray me," Ranma said with utmost confidence.

"As you say. Now we were talking about you coming back to the Amazon village. Well Ranma, if it makes you feel better, I will speak for you but the bulk of the arguing must come from yourself. There are a few ways to deal with your engagement," Cologne said.

"The first and easiest is of course, marrying Shampoo and that's the end of it. But there is one other way for Akane to get in. As you know, males in our village have very little rights, almost to the point of being slaves. Being married to an Amazon is really an Amazon staking her claim on a male, like a possession. As such, when an Amazon tires of a man, she may sell him or give him to another Amazon."

"Now imagine this. If Akane becomes an Amazon, honorary or otherwise, Shampoo can then sell Ranma to Akane who will then be Ranma's husband, free to do whatever she wants with Ranma, including going back to Japan and live a normal life. The trick however, is for Akane to formally request to join the tribe. Afterwards she'll have to take five trials or tests to become an Amazon. And frankly my dear Akane, you are not ready for at least half of the trials."

Akane was indignant but knew Cologne spoke the truth. "I'm learning Cologne. I'm not as stagnant as I was."

"I understand but you've only focused on your strength and little else. You need more skills I'm afraid. The five trials are strength, speed, cunning, mental strength and the worst of all, trial of blood. The trial of blood means you have to ultimately defeat the best warrior in our tribe. Which at the moment, is me."

Ranma looked at Akane. "Akane, I want you to know that you can be as strong as Cologne. But don't expect it to come overnight. I can train you, in fact any of the Captains and even Yoruichi can train you. But the training will be at least five years before you can even think of facing Cologne. Even I would have lost if I didn't have the Neko Ken. So before you jump the gun and challenge Cologne, think of the training you have to go through. And I mean you have to give up college and everything else to devote your entire time to training."

"If that's what its needed to be freed of this enmity with the Amazons, so be it," Akane declared.

"But Akane, I want you to be happy in your life. A full time martial artists is just not you. Please Akane, let's listen to her other alternatives," Ranma pleaded.

Akane's eyes softened. "Continue please, Elder Cologne."

The next suggestion made Cologne smirk. "The next choice is that Ranma marries Shampoo and Shampoo shares Ranma with you."

"NO!" Shampoo, Ranma and Akane slammed their fists on the table then looked at each other in surprise.

Yoruichi sighed. "Yep, my Taichou's gay, he's horrified of having two wives."

"That's not it you stupid Chiss," Ranma hissed and then shut his mouth as he realised he had just said her race's name.

"Ranma Shampoo husband, no will share with anyone!" Shampoo also shook her head adamantly.

"Nor will I," Akane growled.

Cologne smiled. "I know but you wanted to know all the alternatives. This is just another one."

All three glared daggers at Cologne for awhile.

"The only other one left is for you to save the Amazon village. This you have indirectly done when you defeated Saffron, so you actually do have a chance of resolving this engagement. I neglected to mention it to you up till now because truthfully, I wanted you to become a member of the tribe. You have demonstrated a good sense of heart and honour time and again, which makes you good husband material. And as you already know, Shampoo truly loves you."

Ranma sighed. "So I had the ticket to my freedom all along. You just didn't tell me."

"It would have been a great honour to have you as my son-in-law. Yes, I deceived you but now I see it can never be.My advice to you, marry Shampoo, then persuade her to let you go."

"Shampoo not let go if Ranma becomes husband. Shampoo love Ranma," she said sadly.

"I guess that's it then. We'll have to think further on this. In the meantime Colgone, I believe its time we eat. Shall we order some food? I'm sponsoring," Ranma said.

Cologne smiled. "Perhaps, it is best that we take a break from all this politics and be happy for awhile." She suddenly frowned. "For something is about to happen that will make us unhappy for a long while yet."

Ranma's face mirrored Cologne's. "Indeed Cologne, indeed."

**End Chapter**

I just wish for one thing from you guys.

Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews, Reviews.

Thanks for reading. May you all have a pleasant week,


	9. Chap 7:Fall of the Samurai and 1st Blood

**Author's rants**

My apologies for the long wait. For some reason, I couldn't post my story until today even though I finished it on Saturday.

I'm sure some of you are wondering why Cologne hasn't written off the engagement on account of Ranma's defeat of Saffron. Well, I'm not perfect and there's only so much of the manga and Anime I remember, and I primarily watch the anime. I learnt of Saffron only through fan fiction and later the manga as many as 10 years ago. So forgive me for inconsistencies here and there.

Oh, and I've decided that among the Jedi Captains, Hitsugaya will have the most powerful in terms of mind powers, which includes telepathic, telekinetic and pre-cognition a.k.a. predicting the future. This I will attribute as the price of his curse in a later side story.

One last thing. There's a lot of violence in the last part. Beware as you read on.

**Chapter 7: Fall of the Samurai and First Blood.**

Tatewaki Kuno woke up at 6am as he always did. Contrary to popular opinion, he was a disciplined martial artist, who knew he had a time and place every morning. Most of the time, it was figuring out ways to win his pig tailed goddess or the beauteous Tendo Akane heart. Otherwise it was practising the noble art of Kendo, ultimately the greatest form of martial arts in the world (in his own oversized opinion). One day, he hoped to reach the point of Kendo that would defeat the foul sorcery that Ranma possessed which enabled him to effortlessly defeat Kuno time and again.

After spending an hour practising his Kendo strokes, he put aside his bokken and went to have breakfast with his loony sister. Albeit she wasn't so loony either when she was alone with her brother. In fact, since Ranma left, Kodachi had gone back to a semblance of sanity that still was a few oars short of a boat. Despite their animosity to each other, they could not deny each other as flesh and blood and accorded each other the proper respect.

"So my dear sister, what is your agenda on this find day?" Kuno said.

"I heard an interesting rumour. Apparently, the Tendo sisters vanished throughout the weekend and even a few college days. The Amazons and the Okonomiyaki chef also vanished, though in the case of the Amazons, I managed to find out that they took a vacation to Okinawa. It seems strange that my arch rivals disappeared in one time and I deduce, we have an old friend coming back to Nerima."

Kuno gasped. "You cannot mean that foul sorcerer Ranma!" he cried.

"Perhaps. I cannot confirm. Nobody else has seen him. And the only ones probably have as much interest as I have is gone."

"At last, a chance to beat that foul sorcerer. And to free my pig-tailed goddess and Akane from his clutches," Kuno raved, grabbing his bokken and striking what he thought was a righteous pose, with his leg perched up on the chair and his bokken raised high in the air, cracking the ceiling as wood met concrete.

"Do not count your eggs yet dear Brother. Remember our humiliating defeat a few days ago. Only your pig-tailed witch would have the gall to employ someone with a gun on us."

"It matters not. Our righteous anger will defeat the sorcery and all would be as it should be," Kuno had, or rather gave himself a vision. Anyone would have thought he had turned into Happosai.

It was a naked Akane and female Ranma snuggling to him, while he sat on a golden throne.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Outside the Kuno mansion, Hitsugaya's hair stood on end and he growled. Ranma looked at him questioningly.

"You do not want to know what that…. abomination inside is thinking right now," Hitsugaya growled.

Akane looked at Ranma. "I sure hope you know what you are doing Ranma. Good luck," she said.

"Thanks."

Ranma took a deep breath and pressed the doorbell of the Kuno mansion. As expected, the door was answered almost instantly by a small ninja figure that the Tendos knew as Sasuke. His eyes widened in shock as he saw the caller but it wasn't nearly enough to offset the utter miracle of Ranma bowing politely and asking to see the master and mistress of the house. He then saw what Ranma was wearing and gasped.

Ranma was wearing a sleek and black silk kimono. The fashion and the way he wore it was that of a minor noble during the Tokugawa era. But what was out of fashion was the white Hakama (coat) that he wore over the black kimono, giving him a modern edge to an otherwise olden Japanese fashion. One thing for certain: Ranma had learned manners and Sasuke wasn't about to waste this moment.

"Please, come inside Ranma-sama. Ah, I see you have company. I'm afraid they will have to wait here for awhile. Your presence is most certainly welcome but my master and mistress would not be eager to see the rest of your company," Sasuke said.

"Then tell your master of his guests and make it quick. We have little time to waste. As strange as it seems, coming from me especially, there is a great evil coming to Nerima and I intend to prepare to meet it with eyes wide open and swords unsheathed," Ranma said.

Sasuke caught the urgent tone in Ranma's voice and was stunned to see the pig-tailed martial artist dead serious. And goodness, what was with those wrinkles and lines around his face? He looked ten years older according to Sasuke. "Yes, Ranma sama.

The ninja went into the house to report to his master. Barely two minutes later, the Kunos burst out of the house.

"RANMA-SAMA! You've returned to me, Oh ho ho ho ho!" Kodachi cried as she launched herself at him, all sanity lost again.

"Foul sorcerer, prepare to meet your doom," Kuno cried at the same time, rushing forward to thrust his bokken at Ranma.

As Kodachi swung her ribbon to bind Ranma as usual, he caught it with his bare left hand despite the ribbon being made of a razor sharp fabric that could slice most materials granted enough power was used to swing the ribbon. And it didn't even cut his hand. Kuno's bokken was stopped dead on by Ranma's right hand.

"ENOUGH!" Ranma roared and this time he released his Force aura at Kodachi and Kuno. Despite his angry tone, his aura was ice cold and chilled Kodachi and Kuno to the bone. The two gasped in pain and cold as they had never experienced such wounds before. They dropped their weapons, which had been frozen by Ranma's touch and when they hit the floor, they shattered into hundreds of pieces.

"I'm going to do this once. Then if any of you bother me or the Tendos again, I will make sure that none of your wealth and power will save you from a permanent stay in the mental hospital," Ranma growled.

The two fell backward and landed on their asses as they looked at Ranma in awe.

Then Ranma transformed.

Most of his transformations were instantaneous, one douses of water and before anybody could notice anything, and Ranma would change. But this time, there was no water. Ranma was changing slowly into a girl using his own chi, which had harmonized itself with his curse, resulting in his free will and control over the transformations.

Everybody watched as Ranma's hair became redder and redder until it became ruby red. His featured became more delicate and petite but the battle scars and lines of age were still there. What was more surprising to everyone but the Captains was that Ranma's girl form was no longer a diminutive redhead with double D size breasts. Before, Ranma's girl half was only five feet as opposed to his male half's 5 feet 11 inches. But is girl form was now that of a mature woman in her mid twenties, only a few inches shorter than Ranma's male half. Her bust size was as impressive as ever but it was now more proportionately matched with her body size. Kuno nearly had an orgasm as he saw Ranma's chest slowly grew lumps that would have made Britney Spears look like an undergrown grade school kid. Her new woman form was arguably as attractive as Kasumi and definitely beyond that of any Amazon in Cologne's opinion. Once again, Cologne sighed in disappointment due to Ranma's decision not to join the Amazon tribe from Day one. It became apparent that Ranma's girl half had grown in age along with the male half.

"Ranma-sama! My Pig tailed goddess!" the two siblings exclaimed in shock, being fully exposed to his curse for the first time. This was in fact, aided by a telepathic attack on the siblings minds by Hitsugaya as he made sure that they denied nothing in their minds.

The sultry yet intimidating voice of Ranma's girl half answered, "Yes, it is I. Now listen carefully. No I don't love either of you, in my male half or my girl half. Please get it in your sick heads that I have never harboured any feelings whatsoever to either of you!"

"Secondly, I do not regard you as friends. Unlike everyone else here, I have little love for either of you. I couldn't care less if you perish the next day, for unlike everyone else, I have no happy memory with you. You've done nothing but make my life and Akane's miserable for so long. Only my honour and my Jedi code prevents me from destroying you two outright. And believe me, I can."

Ranma pointed his hand at a nearby wall and shot a bolt of chi in it. The chi bolt exploded upon impact, reducing it the entire south wall of the mansion, all 20 meters of it to rubble despite being a small bolt. Again, the crazed siblings absorbed his show of power and Hitsugaya focused himself as the clouds of insanity threatened to blind their minds from this show.

"Thirdly, if you ever try to help Happosai in any way if he comes back to Nerima, you will find me at your doorstep ready to meet out justice. That man is truly a demon and if you consort with one, may God help you because nobody else will sympathise with the fate of traitors."

"Bbbbbbbbuuuuttttt Ranma-Sama? Bbbbbbbbuuuuttttt my pig-tailed goddess? I love you!" the two blurted at the same time.

"Do not insult me with your delusions. All you wanted was for me to get into your pants or into mine."

Everybody including the Captains shuddered. That was just too weird coming from Ranma and Hitsugaya momentarily blocked himself from thinking weird thoughts. Surprisingly, although Ranma was saying it, he wasn't thinking it.

"Don't bother me again, or anyone else again. I'm coming back to marry Akane and stay in Nerima. She is the one I love. Goodbye," and with a swish of his robes, he turned and walked out of the house. Everyone else except Neji followed in his footsteps. Neji on the other hand, walked to the Kunos. Their eyes widened as they recognised and both tried to thaw themselves and move although the cold was really in their hearts, not their bodies.

"Ranma won't kill you. He is not a killer. He may be a Taichou with the power to demolish cities but he never killed more than he could help it. He is an honourable martial artist who once upon a time, only wished to be the best. Now all he wants is a normal life. It is this quality that has earned him the loyalty of countless millions in another time and galaxy. More importantly, it has bound me to him as my saviour. As such, I will fulfil my oath to protect him, even if it means going against his code. So do not stray from what he said," Neji launched a psychic spell that restored the Kunos movements and they both gasped as they could barely breathe while under Ranma's spell and took in huge gulps of air.

"What, how, why…. Oh my stars what happened to Ranma?" Kodachi gasped.

Neji looked at them sadly. "He lost much of his innocence in order to grow up. That is all," then he disappeared.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

Tendo Kasumi smiled as she hear the door opened and the sound of numerous guests came in. _Well, that took faster than I thought._

Only Akane and Nabiki came in though. "Everyone else went to the dojo for meditation, and in Cypher's case prayers. I get the feeling that Kuno won't be bothering us for a long time. I won't be so optimistic as to say he is finally out of the picture though," Nabiki said.

Kasumi poured out tea for her sisters. "I'm sure it'll all be alright in the future," she said this positively in her heart this time."

Nabiki looked at Kasumi. "Neh Kasumi, you don't happen to know who this Andy Wong is do you?"

"No, Ranma and the rest talk about him a lot but we've never seen him, not even during the Okinawa trip. You know as much as I do Nabiki. Why do you ask?"

"It's just something that happened between Cypher and Hitsugaya when they first met you. You're not the only one who saw them wink at each other. I got weird feelings about this Andy Wong, almost afraid of him. I mean, what kind of leader goes off to work and lets his subordinates rest? He's just too strange. I find it hard to believe that he's not going to help us even though he can. I mean, obviously Ranma is mature enough after going through whatever he went through. Why the further trials and tests?" Nabiki said.

"Perhaps this time, it is us that will go through the test. Perhaps now, it is our turn to meet his expectations that we are mature enough the have Ranma. I admit he does seem like a meddling busybody but to be honest, we all needed a busybody father figure. I just wish Otosama had had the strength to do that. Then we would be in our current situation now," she said sadly.

Soun and Genma had disappeared mysteriously during their trip. Judging by the state of the house, the two only just left on Sunday night only a few hours before the gang came back to Nerima. This meant a drinking session where the two were probably lying in a police station somewhere, drunk and dirty. Kasumi had had to bail the two out a few times before.

"In a way, I kind of look forward to the challenge. I mean, I know Ranma loves me and I him but I also would like to test my love for him, not for his sake but for my sake. I think something bad is going to happen ne chan (referring to Nabiki) so its best we expect it rather than pray it doesn't come," Akane said to Nabiki.

Nabiki scowled. "I'll come out of those encounters neutral. So it has been then, so it has been now."

"Please be careful Nabiki. Sometimes, things don't happen the way their supposed to and we've got to accept them and face our fears."

"The only fear I have is losing this house and all our money," she said with her ice-queen expression than went up to her room.

The two sisters shook their heads and prayed that Nabiki's attitude would change. Somehow it missed Ranma's mind that Nabiki also needed change and happiness.

Hitsugaya Toshirou, Cypher, Jaina and Neji didn't however.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

Location: Sichuan, China

Andy Wong stood in the middle of a burning village. The smell of burnt flesh invaded his nostrils but sad to say, he was used to the smell. In his hand, he held the head of a Musk warrior, whose headless body lay before his feet. He dropped it and looked around.

The village had been razed, most of its populace killed or taken away. Andy was making his way back to Japan but as he reached the edge of the forests to civilisation, he felt a disturbance in the Force which bore the mark of mass murder. He hurried back to the forests and came upon a destroyed Amazon village, one of their outposts on the edge of their territory bordering with the Musk. He shook his head as most of the Amazons here were fully fledged warriors, which meant most of them had gone down fighting. But there were still a few who were not killed, driven off like cattle back to the Musk territory as far as Andy could make out of the tracks. When he arrived, a group of four soldiers had just netted a young Amazon, no more than 15 years old. She was struggling against the groping of her capturers whose intents were all too clear. Andy had flash stepped out of the trees and beheaded all of them.

The Amazons whimpered in fear as she saw Andy, who radiated terrible power. His expression softened as he toned down his power then slowly but firmly, cut the net from the naked Amazon girl. She was truly traumatised with her near-rape and ran into the forests screaming. Andy sighed. At least the Amazons will have plenty of warning now. He then started to analyse the wreckage. It had been done by a force that had been equipped with guns and vehicles. The bodies of the Musk had holsters and judging by the loose ammunition around, had been armed with AK-47s and Glock 18 pistols, popular terrorist weapons and easily obtained anywhere in the world. Many even had tasers, obviously for their slaving work.

And then Andy came upon a horrifying set of tracks. They were like huge cloven hoof marks, as large as elephant's feet and every where it led, blood and gore came in abundance. The victims had been gored with something huge and sharp, most were slashed to pieces and one body looked as though it had been ripped apart in two.

_So this is your secret weapon Happosai. Demons, _Andy thought.

And then he felt metal crashing on his head. And breaking upon impact on his skull yet he stood unscathed. He turned around and looked at his assailant.

It was a huge monster at least 3 meters high. Bat-like wings protruded from his body which was man like and dressed in ancient breastplate armour adorned with skulls and the patterns of anguished humans. His feet were like that of a bull, cloven and even had spiked horse shoes. The monster's head was also bull like. It bore little difference to Minotaurs of Greek legends except for the wings and armour.

Thus it was that Andy Wong met a Bloodletter of Khorne, one of its lesser demons but as deadly and voracious as any other demon on Ranma's planet.

The beast was shocked as the axe which he had used to try split Andy Wong broke. Behind the beast, Happosai and a group of other humans were also shocked. "KILL HIM, DO NOT LET HIM ESCAPE ALIVE!" he shouted as the humans, who were warlocks in Andy's eyes continued to chant, goading the beast. The warlocks in turn, started chanting faster and goaded the demon to fight on.

The demon slammed a mighty fist at Andy Wong but he had already moved away. He took out Aegrost and aimed it between the demons eyes and incanted a spell of confusion and insanity. The spell hit the demon straight on, disrupting the telepathic link with the warlocks, effectively severing their control over it. Happosai quickly flash stepped out of the demons way as it went berserk and went towards to warlocks. Their screams were quick and painful as the Bloodletter tore them apart. With the warlocks prayers gone though, it was weakened and could not say long in the physical world without more blood to sustain it.

Andy Wong raised Aegrost into the air and the sword glowed and became white hot. The demon, sensing Andy's power, turned to him and charged him like a raging bull. As he pounced at Andy, he rushed forward beneath the demon and swung Aegrost in an overhead swing, effectively slicing the demon in half. He then turned on his energy shield to block a massive chi attack from Happosai. The chi attack was so powerful that the energy shield's power reserves were drained in a few seconds and Andy made a secondary shield out of his own chi to block the rest.

When the chi attack subsided, he faced off with Happosai, Jedi Lord against the Master of Anything Goes Martial Arts. "How dare you interfere with my plans, outsider? This is none of your business. You would do well enough to live well enough alone."

Andy Wong remained silent, merely looking at Happosai.

"Answer me, have you no tongue?" Happosai was beginning to feel afraid of this stranger who had not only defeated a demon but also took a direct attack from a demon with not even a hair loss.

Andy sheathed his sword and flash stepped away, leaving Happosai screaming obscenities at him.

_Ranma, Akane, I hope you're up to this. If only I could take away all your worries, _he thought sadly. With the demons entering the equation, the balance of power had changed. For now Happosai actually had something that could stand up to the Jedi captains. And perhaps, Andy Wong himself.

He tried to send a psychic message to Hitsugaya but to his horror, he found that he could not. He tried to widen his senses and realised that the entire area seemed to be filled with the telepathic eqivalent of white noise: in other words, Andy Wong's telepathic abilities were being jammed. And it seemed to extend towards the whole of China.

Andy's heart felt cold as he thought of the implications of this. None of Happosai's meetings seemed to demonstrate this power. Something else was at work here. And Andy didn't know what it was. Whatever was happening, he had to get back to Nerima ASAP. The captains had to know. Even if they were all champions of the light and the bane of chaos and darkness, those under their protection were not. And even Goliath fell before a stone...

He flash stepped deep into forest until he came to an empty clearing. From there he uttered an incantation for teleportation. His destination: Nerima.

**To be continued…..**

The opening salvo has been shot. Now the war will begin. Since nothing in the Ranma universe can beat the Jedi Captains save for Herb now that Saffron's dead, I've decided to add demons into the mix to give some challenge. Watch Ranma and Cypher train Akane, Ukyo and even Shampoo. And I'm not talking martial arts. Weapons, demolitions, espionage, assasination, combat healing to name a few. Heck even some genetic modification.. no guys, I'm just toying with you all. You guys really don't want to know what it takes to be a Space Marine. Let's just say a whole lot of implants with NO anesthesia.

Thanks you for reading guys. Remember, review otherwise I won't know the faults of my story.


	10. Chapter 8: Darkness descending

Disclaimer

Yes yes, I don't own any of the characters stated in this story except for the nameless minions as well as my very own character, Andy Wong

**Author's rants**

I know guys. Really lousy chapter that last one. Even as I posted it I knew it but I feel like I needed to get the story going into the drama bit. As much as we all like to see Ranma having some fun and happiness, I'm just not good at comedy and light relief.

So rather than bore you all with Ranma and Akane chasing butterflies in the fields, I've decided to go to the serious bits.

Warning to all: This chapter definitely rated M. Nerima citizens will die this chapter.

Also, regarding the two girls who were Akane's friends in school, I remember one as Sayuri but can't remember the other one, so I'll go with Haruka. Ranma's friends I remember was Daisuke and Hiroshi I think. Correct me if I'm wrong and I'll amend accordingly.

One last thing. I'm going to turn Taro into a tentacle hentai monster. Yes, I am familiar with that aspect of anime. So I warn you that my description of Taro will be disgusting and Kasumi will be the witness to it.

**Chapter 8: Darkness descending**

After dealing with the Kunos, Akane thought that her life with Ranma would truly begin. She had somehow forgotten about Happosai as only Kasumi seemed to give serious thought to the old pervert. But instead of being happy of dealing with the last obstacles that was Kodachi and Kuno, Ranma had become tenser. And it wasn't just Ranma, the other Captains were looking as though the sky was about to fall the next minute.

To take his mind off it, the next day she decided to invite him to college.

"Huh?" he said, surprised at Akane's suggestion.

"You know, the community college in Nerima ward. That's where I've been studying for the past two years. Come on, Sayuri and Haruka is still there, Daisuke and Hiroshi too."

Ranma scratched his head. "Not that I don't want to see them but I feel I'm going to have a hell of a time explaining my age to them."

"Does it matter? C'mon Ranma, you should know they were also very worried about you when you left. At least once a month, they always ask me of news if you. Don't make me lie to them Ranma. Please?" she pleaded, making puppy dog eyes that she saw Ranma do once as a girl when she went to the ice-cream parlour.

Ranma smiled. _I never thought of the day she willingly use that technique against me. And it's a technique I'll gladly fall for ten thousand times. _

"OK Akane, guess I'll see the two bozos Daisuke and Hiroshi. What are they planning to study anyway?"

Akane giggled. "Apparently, to be paediatricians."

Ranma stared. "What?"

"It sort of started after you left. The two were looking for odd jobs while in college but all the usual ones like delivery boys or waiting on tables had been taken up. Then the two had the bright idea of assisting a nearby nursery school in their babysitting duties, figuring that _'taking care of a few brats should be too hard'_. The next day we saw them, the two looked like they had gone through a warzone after taking care of 20 pre-adolescents. But surprisingly, the more they kept going back, the more they liked it. After one year of studying Business Administration and Accountancy, the two dropped those subjects and studied medicine, which is supposed to be a spring board for pediatrics. As a matter of fact, they're Kasumi's classmates, and have often studied together," Akane explained.

Ranma shook his head. "I guess after all I've been through, seeing those two handling babies shouldn't be so shocking. So when are we going?"

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A few minutes later, the students at Nerima college was stunned to see Akane, who was well known as a martial artist and tomboy, being accompanied by an obviously older and mature young man. To minimise recognition, Ranma chose the same Captain attire that he wore to see the Tatewakis. People were so impressed or shocked at his clothing that they missed out his face altogether, which suited Ranma well, as he didn't want to attract anymore girls. He hoped his face would be deterrent enough to any bimbos who would fall for looks alone.

They walked and chatted, Akane mainly did the talking about her academic life. Her studies were gearing more towards mechanical engineering, where she hoped to be able to use her hands to make something as opposed to paperwork. But getting into Tokyo university was double hard and the requirements for engineering would have required someone of perhaps Kasumi's intelligence to be able to pass the threshold. This is why she was in her third year as a ronin now, having failed two entrance exams. Ranma was sympathetic and told Akane that she could do it, all she needed was time and study.

"Never let your passions die Akane, especially for something as stupid as our former engagement. Just so you know, I would never gone through the wedding if our fathers had forces us into it," Ranma said.

"Let's not talk about that Ranma. That part of our lives is over. Its time we did something on our own, like chasing down Hirosuke and Daisuke. I believe they owe me cash for helping them with some dominatrix they tried to pick up a few weeks ago. If it weren't for me, the two would have been chained up in some basement and…."

"I get the picture, Akane, more's the pity," Ranma said while blushing. He was still shy around the subject of anything to do with sex. Somehow, in this respect, he was still in essence his former self.

And then the college cafeteria exploded.

The peaceful environment turned to instant chaos as people screamed when broken debris shot out and pierced many students. Ranma quickly pushed Akane into a nearby building and with his Amaguriken speed, started deflecting falling debris from hitting the students. Akane saw several people lying on the ground and realized, to her horror, that they were dead. Some of them had numerous pieces of glass pierced into their backs, while others were half hidden under huge debris that had fallen on them.

She saw one person moving even though she was lodged under a huge piece of stone which crushed half her body. She rushed to the person, wanting to help her somehow. To her horror, she found it was Sayuri, with half of her body covered with debris. "Akane…." she groaned weakly.

"Sayuri!" Akane attempted to shift the debris but there was one particular huge one that looked like a wall. She tried to lift it but despite her strenght, could not budge it.

"Don't Akane, if you move the debris, it might further damage her body. Stand aside," Ranma had reappeared beside Akane, his white coat now dirty with dust and bloodstains. He analysed the debris then asked Akane to hold Sayuri's hands and prepare to drag her out. Then he lifted the debris clean off Sayuri. Akane pulled Sayuri away and then only Ranma put the debris down. Fortunately, Sayuri's lower body had not been crushed as Akane had feared although it was thoroughly bruised and it was clear her hip bones were broken as well as her legs.

"Nothing that can't be healed, at least now that I'm around," Ranma said as he took out a strange contraption from his coat that looked like a gun with a syringe for a barrel.

Sayuri's eyes widened. "Ranma?"

"Sssshhhhhhh, this will only hurt a bit. Don't worry, you are going to be fine," Ranma whispered as he administered the drug.

"But Hiroshi, Daiskuke, we were supposed to meet them at lunch…." Sayuri continued to speak and then she fainted.

Ranma remained silent as he touched his hand on Sayuri's hips and legs. Akane despite everything felt a twitch of anger before noticing the look of concentration on Ranma's face as well as feeling a little of Ranma's chi flowing out into Sayuri. After 20 seconds, he removed his hands.

"I've reset her bones and healed them. Akane, take Sayuri on your back and get to the hospital. I'm going to check on the others."

"But why, what…. Who could have done this? And what about Daisuke and Hiroshi?" Akane asked, bewildered.

Ranma looked at Akane with a neutral expression. "Take Sayuri to the hospital," and with that he rushed off to save as many lives as he could.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Neji and Jaina were having tea with Cologne when they both saw the news. For once, Shampoo was glad the TV was there as too often, the guests had broken away from the sight of her to gaze at some event on television, like the silly English Football as it was now showing the scene of chaos that was Nerima College.

"Aiyah, that were kitchen destroyer study!" Shampoo exclaimed.

The two captains instantly stood up and were about to dash out of the restaurant when Cologne cried, "Do not exit the building, all of you! Mouse, Shampoo, close the windows and doors, at once!"

"Why in the world…" Jaina started but Neji put his hand on Jaina's shoulder.

"Can't you feel it? We're surrounded," Neji said as his sword the holy katana Gerbera Straight, materialized at his hip.

Mouse had barely gone to the window when a gun shot rang out. The boy Amazon fortunately was wearing his glasses and dodged at the last minute as a bullet went through where his head had been and wedged itself at the kitchen counter. The few guests that had been in the restaurant screamed and scrambled to the floor as the sound of automatic fire were heard and accompanied by dozens of rounds being emptied into the restaurant. Jaina quickly closed the door and remaining windows using the Force while Neji halted the rest of the incoming bullets dead in their tracks in mid air.

"Cologne, is there another way out of here?" Jaina asked as she extended her sphere of influence to outside the restaurant. From there she could start deflecting the bullets with her Force abilities so that the restaurant would not suffer from the incoming fire."

"My faithful customers, please go to the kitchen area. My grand daughter Shampoo will guide you to safety. Mouse, go do something useful like kill our assailants for goodness sake," Cologne barked.

Mouse was current extracting almost every conceivable throwing weapon from underneath the counter and stuffing them into his robes.

"No Mouse, go with Shampoo and Cologne. We will…." Neji started to say.

"Shut up," Mouse barked to their surprise. "This is our restaurant, the pride of Amazon culture in Japan. I will not suffer our surrogate home to be attacked by the treacherous Musk. They will pay, for trying to attack us here, now and in broad daylight. For the Amazon village!" he yelled and promptly leapt out of the skylight with a battlecry that pierced through the air filled with gunfire. Shampoo was dumbfounded by Mouse sudden display of bravery and, well, manliness before Cologne bopped her head with the staff. "Don't just stand there, get the guest down the underground passage," she barked.

"Damn it, so that boy does have guts and honour after all," Jaina snarled. She reached into the folds of her coat and extracted her lightsaber in her right hand and a Blaster in her left hand. Neji had already unsheathed his katana. The two looked at each other then burst out of the door against a hail of AK-47 bullets.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

On another side of Nerima, Cypher, Uyko and Hitsugaya ran not to the Nerima College but towards somewhere in the market street of Nerima. Or rather Hitsugaya and Ukyo were hanging from Cypher's shoulders while the superhuman Space Marine ran at almost 70 kilometers an hour. The three were on the edge of Nerima city and were planning to install a series of beacons and sensors to detect chi disturbances when Hitsugaya felt the death of many in Nerima College. The three had hurriedly started running towards the college but then Hitsugaya suddenly sensed Kasumi screaming. And it was followed by a sudden emergence of evil intent all over Nerima. It was as though the city had experienced a sudden change of weather from a sunny day of happiness to a thunderstorm of evil in two seconds.

"Hurry, Kasumi is in danger. The rest are already in battle. She's all alone!" Hitsugaya urged Cypher on.

"Those fathers better have a good reason for leaving their daughter alone right now, or I'm going to make them punching bags for the Fallen Angels," Cypher snarled.

"Less talk, more running. We've got to help Kasumi!" Ukyo said as she clung on for dear life on Cypher's back.

As they entered the city area Cypher suddenly saw multiple rocket propelled grenades ("RPG") shot out from the windows of the nearby buildings heading directly at him. Hitsugaya telekinetically pushed all of the RPGs so that they soared up into the sky, only detonating when they were about 30 meters above the ground. Cypher's eyes noted where the shooters were, then quickly as lightning, whipped out his ancient Bolt Pistols and started shooting. His shooters quickly hid behind their window but unfortunately, Bolt Pistols fired high explosive bullets which were also armour piercing. The result of Cypher's marksmanship was that the five assailants who fired the RPGs found their bodies pierced by the bullets as they penetrated the walls behind which they had been hiding. They had little time to scream before the bullets detonated and turned them into minced meat.

Cypher quickly went into a nearby shop for cover. Ukyo and Hitsugaya jumped of his back and quickly armed themselves, Ukyo with her spatula while the boy captain unsheathed his star guarded Katana.

"What the hell is going on? Are those Muslim terrorists? Why would they strike at Japan?" Ukyo said, bewildered as it was the first time she saw firearms being used. Somehow, in all her misadventures with Ranma, the Nerima Wrecking Crew had never seen firearms used against them before or against each other.

"They're not Muslims. The minds I touched are cowardly and mercenary. And they're all over the Ward. I sense almost every martial artist in Nerima has been attacked by those mercenaries," Hitsugaya said.

"To materialise out of nowhere, especially with us here, could it be…." Cypher pondered.

"My guess is that they're quite adept at hiding their chi and intentions. Wouldn't surprise me of the need given the large amount of martial artists here." Hitsugaya concentrated again as he expanded his force senses to cover not just the surrounding area but the whole of Nerima. He sensed the mourning, shock and fear of the students of Nerima as they discovered more and more of their friends dead or dying. He saw the sparks of hope arose in a few of them as Ranma darted here and there, lifting debris and healing students on the fly, or at least bring their dead bodies out. And then he touched Kasumi mind.

"Oh God, KASUMI!" Hitsugaya screamed as he ran out of the building, with Cypher and Ukyo. Only to find a mob of perhaps fifty men waiting outside waiting for them, armed to the teeth with 20th century weapons except for the leader.

"Hold it right that, you little bastard. You ain't going nowhere," their leader said, a huge Chinese man who apart from wearing Kevlar vest, had the pelt of a white tiger draped around his shoulder. And he pointed a gun that Hitsugaya thought looked like an primitive hand held rail gun.

**Author's note**

Think of the rail gun from the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie Eraser. Advance to us but to the residents of the Star Wars universe, primitive.

**End Author's note**

Hitsugaya glowed blue as he barely contained his rage. Cypher said, "I know, I bet we all regret taking that oath to restrain our full powers when we came to Ranma's world. Let's get this over with. The sooner we smash these heretics, the sooner we get to Kasumi."

The boy captain merely nodded. He lowered his sword and held out his hand. The Chinese leader laughed, thinking that Hitsugaya wanted to be friends when the boy captain said, "_Accio Firearms!" _and all the guns belonging to those men flew out of their arms and gathered in a pile at Hitsugaya's feet. Then he used his telekinetic power to crush the guns into a ball of scrap metal.

Cypher holstered his pistol and took out a small gladius like sword. "Keep close to me Ukyo," he said and Ukyo nodded, clutching her Giant Spatula tightly.

"REPENT FOR TODAY YOU DIE!" Cypher cried the Dark Angels ancient battle cry and charged at the men who drew out their hand held weapons.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Kasumi was bringing lunch to her father when she saw the news on TV.

_"…. an explosion happened in Nerima College today at about 11:30am. The faculty of engineering sciences has been completely destroyed by what appears to be a bomb blast. Many students have been hurt and although authorities have yet to confirm it, there are doubtless student casualties as the building also served as the cafeteria building ..."_

She dropped the tray and screamed in horror when she realised that it was at Nerima College that the explosion had happened. Her father and Genma, who had been so engrossed by their game of shogi were scared out of their wits by the crashing of dishes.

"Kasumi, you clumsy girl, look what you've done?" Soun whined at the good lunch Kasumi had dropped.

"Father, that's Nerima College. Akane and Nabiki are there! We've got to go see if they're alright!" Kasumi said as she hurriedly went to her room to grab her purse and first aid kit.

It took a moment for Soun to register that the explosion happened in Nerima college and as usual, the waterworks broke. "WAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! My little girls! Where are my little girls!" he cried as waterfalls of tears started gushing out.

"There there, Soun, I'm sure nothing will happen to Akane. Come on, let's go see if she's alright," Genma in a rare streak of goodness, was concerned enough to get Soun to go Nerima College.

As the three ran to the college, Kasumi was soon left behind as Genma and Soun used their martial arts speed to start roof hopping. Amid her panic, she felt slightly angry at them for forgetting about her. Now she was running alone through the empty market street towards the college, which was at least another 5 blocks away.

Kasumi suddenly felt strange that it was so quiet. It was supposed to be a busy market day yet the streets were completely quiet. There were no cars, no pedestrians and even inside the shops, there were no customers or shopkeepers. An ice cold feeling crept into her heart as she realized that it was wrong for a market street in Nerima to be empty. Her heart suddenly felt many eyes staring at her even though she could see no one. However, her chi senses were not lying. There was someone around, and it was not someone she wanted to meet alone.

She desperately ran faster but the silence only grew more eerie. She ran past shop after shop for 10 minutes then realized with horror, that she should have reached the college by now. But when she stopped, she noticed that she was back to where she started when she first noticed the emptiness.

"Oh God, what is going on? Please, I pray Akane and Ranma is safe," she whispered as she turned to retrace her steps…...

…. only to bump into Pantyhose Taro. She was shocked at seeing the young man in front of her who had also been gone for two years. "Taro, what are you doing here?" she asked in surprise.

Taro grinned and it was not a nice one. "Why looking for you Kasumi dear. I can't believe that all this while I've been so obsessed with Ranma and Akane that I failed to notice what a jewel you are. You would make Akane and Nabiki look like dirty whores compared to your beauty." He reached out his hand and lifted Kasumi's chin. "Such conservative dressing though, I don't believe women have worn dresses in the last 10 years."

Kasumi slapped his hand and backed away, suddenly realising that Taro's intentions were anything but good at the moment. She always knew he had a penchant for violence but now, mixed together with it, was lust.

"Taro, I can't stay, I have to get to college, my sister's there," Kasumi said, trying to maintain her trademark smile and bowing to Nerima despite all her instincts to run for her life.

"Oh don't worry, we only exploded the building just before she entered it. She's unharmed. It wouldn't do to have Happosai's prize damaged."

Kasumi's eyes widened in shock and fear threatened to drown her heart and lose all reason. "Yyyyyoooouuu, killed those people?" she stuttered.

"Just a diversion to get most of the busybodies in Nerima, including the dratted Amazons, into the scene. Leaving our real objective alone and ripe for the picking," Taro said with an evil grin.

Kasumi turned to run, only to find a dozen men blocking her way.

"Seize her."

Kasumi tried to stay calm as the men closed in on her. She desperately tried to remember the Tendo School of martial arts that she had learned so long ago, the part which Akane had perfected, the art of Mass Attacks Against Multiple Opponents. As the men closed in on her, she tried to break through by sweeping her leg across a few of theirs. Perhaps it was surprise that did the trick but the men were shocked that she would try something like that and moreover, Kasumi wasn't as out of shape as she thought she was. Her kick was hard and swiped two of them off their feet. Then as Kasumi expected, the rest of the men threw themselves on her trying to pin her but she wriggled her way out of the mass who were trying to grab her only to find their comrade instead.

Kasumi squirmed and tore her dress as she crawled out of the mess, only to find two massive hooves in front of her face. She looked up in horror to see the cursed form of Pantyhose Taro, that of the Drowned Yeti with Eel and Crane riding on an Ox. The massive form was 2.5 meters and the bulk was like that of an elephant. But to add to her horror, were purple tentacles that protruded from his arms and legs. Then she looked at his body and screamed in fear and horror. Instead of one penis, there were eight; all of them were tentacle shaped and a meter long. And four of these appendages now gripped her arms and pulled her up in mid air. The other four wrapped themselves around Kasumi's legs and spread them wide along with her arms in the air.

She had no trouble guessing what the abomination was saying because Taro spoke in his cursed form Japanese in deep guttural tone. "Now that was surprising. No doubt Happosai will be even more pleased. It would not do to have submissive slaves. Oh no, your fighting spirit will heat up the blood of many men." Then he reached out a massive hand and started feeling inside Kasumi's dress at her breast.

Then Kasumi for the first time in her life, became enraged. Everything had been going perfect. Ranma had returned, he had given them a nice time, not to mention nice friends, and now it was going to be shattered by perverts. She couldn't bear it. She would not lose her most precious gift that was only to be given to her one true love to be lost to this… asshole!

And with strength she didn't know existed in her, she pushed her head forward and bit Taro's hand as hard as she could. His hand was hairy, smelly and so tough it was like chewing leather. But all she wanted was to cause him as much pain to let her go.

But Taro merely smiled and said, "Oh dear, is this the part where I scream, let go of you and you run off to safety? Only happens in movies my dear." And with that, he ripped her dress down the middle, exposing Kasumi's body exposed to the air. Her ripped dress fell to the ground, leaving her suspended in mid air in only her underwear. She tried to scream again but Taro grabbed her throat and squeezed it so hard that she lost her breath and nearly blacked out from suffocation.

"Let me make this clear Kasumi. Nobody is going to save you, you are now the property of Happosai, Grand Master of the Anything Goes Martial Arts," Taro taunted as he ripped Kasumi's panties and bra off. "I may be forbidden from taking your cherry but he didn't say about not touching everywhere else."

The poor girl's spirit was broken when the last of her clothing was gone. Then she saw Taro's tail, which was that of an eel poise itself at her lips. "Now for some fun and practise for you. After all, it won't do for you to be a total numbskull at sex when you've been given to the master," Taro grinned as he pinched Kasumi's nose so that she would be forced to open her mouth to breathe. And when she did, the eel tail would force its way into Kasumi's throat.

_Ranma, Akane,…help me! _she mentally screamed as she desperately closed her mouth to deny the disgusting eel from entering her mouth. Her earlier suffocation had already deprived her of oxygen and here she was trying to hold her breath again. _No, no, nooooooo! _she cried as she gasped for air.

"Lesson one, blowjob," Taro said wickedly as the eel forced its way into Kasumi's mouth and down her throat.

_Akane, Ranma, Cypher, Nabiki, Hitsugaya, anyone! _Kasumi sobbed and cried as the eel slid in and out of her throat. The dozen men hooted and jeered as they watched Kasumi violated.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

In less than one hour, the entire Nerima ward had turned into chaos. Every martial artist in Nerima was besieged, even the Kunos were fighting off a hoard of mercenaries in their estate, for once their righteous fury was warranted. Happosai's little warbands of Musk soldiers led by Yakuza guides, carefully orchestrated a simultaneous attack on all the dojos and even the local police enforcement, isolating them from coming to each other's aide.

As the Jedi Captains fought against their assailants and Taro molested Kasumi, the sky darkened rapidly. In 20 minutes since Taro began his evil work, the sky was split was multiple lightning bolts. Thunder drummed through the sky in quick succession, stopping almost everyone in Nerima from their current activities. Rain started to pour down in torrents while the lightning and thunder continued unabated until everyone but the Jedi Captains had to cover their ears and eyes from the continuous thunder and lightning. Then a particularly huge flash lightning appeared and slashed down into the middle of Nerima's market street.

"Our Lord has come," Cypher said quietly even though nobody but Hitsugaya could hear him. Then he picked up Hitsugaya and Ukyo, hoisted them unto his shoulders and ran towards the spot the lightning struck. Leaving behind the mutilated bodies of fifty Musk men behind.

Elsewhere, Jaina and Neji disposed their attackers and ran towards the spot as well. Ranma also took Akane in his arms and ran as well.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Taro was enjoying his blowjob when he noticed the sky grew dark around him. He thought little of it even when the lightning and thunder started, having grown up in the open although even by his standards it was a lot more heavier. But he was too caught up in his own pleasure especially when the rain started drenching the naked Kasumi. Thus it was that he failed to notice the lightning bolt that shot down from the heavens and struck his body. But before that, he felt an unknown force grip each of the tentacles holding Kasumi as well as his eel tail, and prompt ripped them apart, disconnecting him from Kasumi before the lightning struck.

"AAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHH!" he screamed as his whole body was nearly roasted and charred by tens of thousands of voltage, not to mention having his flesh torn off. If it weren't for his superb constitution, training and his cursed form, Taro would have been dead. But he barely survived, and was thrown through an office building.

But the lightning bolt also passed through the dozen men that had been watching Taro molest Kasumi. Their cries were quick and so were their deaths.

When Kasumi was disconnected from Taro's fleshy appendages, her mind was in constant denial as Taro defiled her body. She had completely shut out the outside world and retreated into the mental image of being in the arms of her mother when Kimiko Tendo was still alive. Thus it was she didn't feel strong hands catching her in mid air and a soft fabric covering her naked body.

After more than four hundred years, Andy Wong once again peered into the eyes of one who had shown him kindness so long ago. But the eyes were not the kind and loving ones that had graced his all those years ago. Kasumi's eyes were open but listless, this time completely oblivious to the outside world. She kept on muttering, "mother, mother, mother, mother….." again and again. The Jedi Lord was nearly overcome with grief at Kasumi's state of mind, although he knew that Kasumi hadn't truly been raped. Yet the experience of violation for one so innocent….

He touched Kasumi's forehead with his. A white aura engulfed the two and gradually gathered at the point where their foreheads joined. Andy started chanting an ancient spell that would help ease the state of Kasumi's mind. It was a spell of White Sorcery, a branch of magic that focused purely on the healing of body, mind and soul. Few knew that though Andy Wong was once known among his foes as the Lord of Terror due to his gruesome ways of killing his enemies, he was also a master of White Sorcery. With some of his energy inserted into Kasumi's mind, he took a deep breath and began to link his mind to her own in order to draw her out of her shell of denial.

_Kasumi, Kasumi, are you there? Listen to my voice …………_

**To be continued**

As always, I need reviews to know where I'm going wrong, as well as to detect loose points in my story. Otherwise feel free to send me private messages to inform me of your opinion. If anyone of you want to pre-read my chapters in the future, kindly inform me and I'll consider you as a pre-reader.

Thanks to everyone who has followed my story. Take care all of you.


	11. Chapter 9: Rebirth of a housewife

Disclaimer

Yes yes, I don't own any of the characters stated in this story except for the nameless minions as well as my very own character, Andy Wong. Warhammer 40,000, Ranma, Bleach and Star Wars characters, logos, phrases and weapons belong to their respective owners, not me.

Author's note: I've revised the chapter as I feel that I shouldn't let all of them be in a completely safe position. Sad to say, I have to make more than one Tendo suffer. Forgive me everyone, especially Nabiki lovers.

**Chapter 9: Rebirth of a housewife**

_Kasumi was running through a large field that was spread as far as the eye could see. It was dotted with flowers of all kinds, even those who weren't supposed to grow in fields. Roses, daisies, camellias, carnations, orchids, bougainvilleas, tulips and many other flowers grew out of the ground, and Kasumi laughed as she threw herself on amid the flowers and rolled over the soft grass and flowers. She was no more than 10 years old and already she felt like the happiest girl alive._

_She stood up after rolling in mirth and there, sitting under a large oak tree, was Kimiko Tendo with Nabiki, Akane and Soun sitting on a picnic mat. Kimiko Tendo, whom Kasum inherited her sweet disposition and most of her looks, gazed lovingly at the eldest Tendo sister._

_"Kasumi dear, come join us!" she said to Kasumi. Kasumi rejoiced at the sound of her mother. Running to the picnic scene, instead of sitting down, she threw herself at Kimiko, knocking them both on the grass, rolling and laughing. _

_It was a scene of happiness that would have been perfect for Kasumi, if only it was real._

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

Metamorphicially speaking, Andy Wong floated in a black void, the only thing which could be seen was a crystal ball as large as a planet. It was through this crystal ball, that he could see the scene of family happiness that was picture perfect. When he flew towards the ball and touched the edge of it, the entire void and the ball erupted in a violent quake that shook Andy Wong and the crystal ball.

He was in Kasumi's mind now and the only thing left in her mind, was this scene of a family picnic, from so long ago. It was as he feared. Most people tend to avoid confronting their inner demons, preferring to distract themselves with other matters, be it friendship, books, games, martial arts etc. Most of the time, these distractions were temporary: everyone has to face their inner demons even if they can't conquer it. But to those who had experienced catastrophic pain or loss, such as the death of a family member or in the worst of cases, rape as Kasumi had nearly experienced, that distraction becomes the focal point of the entire mind to escape the horror that had been experienced. And once inside that prison, very little could be done to draw that person out. Sometimes the person would suddenly realise that the world isn't real and promptly wake up, sometimes they stay there forever.

The most direct way to break the illusion was a telepathic attack to break the distraction point and force the core consciousness to come out. More often than not, it broke the mind of the person especially if the person was especially rooted in Kasumi's little fantasy. In the thousands of years that Andy Wong had lived, no amount of training, learning and knowledge was foolproof against the complexities of dabbling with the human mind. And Andy Wong was not the most powerful telepath in the galaxy, though he was a powerful one, just as not godlike like his other abilities.

Then to his horror, as Kasumi continued to embrace her mother, she became younger and the scene was slowly changing backwards in time. Andy knew what was happening. It wasn't enough to maintain this scene. Kasumi wanted to go back to her mother, literally, back before she began the whole agonizing process that was life.

_In the name of God, I will not let this happen, _Andy thought.

The Lord of Terror would now use his some would say his greatest and most blessed power.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

_Kasumi was now four years old, and her mother was carrying her around the Tendo home garden, around the koi fish pond. The Tendo matriarch appeared to be in her final pregnancy with her second daughter, Nabiki._

_"You're getting too big for me Kasumi. Soon I won't be able to carry you at all," Kimiko said to her daughter._

_"No, no, I'm never going to grow up, I want to stay with you forever!" Kasumi cried. _

_"But you must! You will soon have a baby sister and you must take care of her as well. A good sister is what you must be, so that you can help me raise her to be as good and beautiful as you."_

_"Oka san, I don't wanna grow up. Its scary to grow up. There are monsters in the dark!" Kasumi said, as she buried her face in Kimiko's shoulder. _

_Kimiko sighed. "You must look forward Kasumi. The monsters in the dark, who said you cannot defeat them? Who said that you are weaker than them? Who said that my daughter is not strong or clever enough to defeat them?"_

_Kasumi lifted her face from the folds of Kimiko's clothes and looked at her mother, with tears in her eyes. "But I'm scared Ka-san! What if they catch me! The monster, have big teeth horns, claws, and, and, and….." in her mind, the vision of tentacles and eels began to emerge._

"_Then you must fight. Never give up Kasumi. You didn't give up after I died, didn't you?" Kimiko said quietly._

_Kasumi looked at her mother in horror. The scene had now changed. She was back to the streets of Nerima and once again, she was naked and in the grips of Pantyhose Taro. Taro's tail eel was in her mouth, sliding in and out and tasted slimy and foul. Her eyes turned and she saw Kimiko Tendo, in her death robes that she wore before being cremated, looking at her._

"_OKASAN, NO! DON'T LEAVE ME, DON'T LET ME GO!" Despite being gagged by the eel, Kasumi's shout somehow rang out in the empty streets to her mother._

_Kimiko Tendo looked sadly. "I have to Kasumi. In fact, I've already left remember. Its time you took control of your life. I am sorry that the man I married and whom I called husband failed so dismally to bring you all up to be strong and independent. But not once did I regret giving birth to you all. Even if the world was ravaged, and monsters reigned, I would still not regret having the three of you as my daughters. You are strong Kasumi. Stronger than Nabiki or Akane, or even Ranma. Remember that it was your love, that eventually brought out Ranma's and Akane's love for each other. Without being the foundation for them, the firm rock and ground for their relationship to fall back on, my dear Akane would never know love, only anger and contempt, for men."_

"_Okasan…" Kasumi's cried as two of Taro's tentacles now disengaged and prepared to penetrate her._

"_The strength is in you Kasumi. Trust in yourself, to just to defeat the storm but to weather it as well. If not for Akane, Ranma, Nabiki or even your father, do it for yourself. And through you, the salvation of the rest will follow," Kimiko eyes pleaded with Kasumi's, the same eyes that said I love you to Kasumi on her death bed. _

_Those same eyes had projected the same power and strength that enabled her to service her family for the next 9 years as Kasumi took it upon herself to step into her mother's shoes even before she found out that her father had turned into a complete wreck of a man. The same eyes now filled Kasumi with the revelation that it was only her body that was being violated. Her mind had been violated only because she had chosen to give in to her weakness when in fact, she shouldn't have. _

_Strength, determination and a touch of anger filled her mind as she saw the two tentacles about to force themselves into her asshole and vagina. Her arms and legs were still being held by his remaining tentacles but the eel was still in her mouth._

"_I will be strong. I will not be defeated by this… THING! FOR RANMA, FOR AKANE!" she mentally screamed as she bit into the eel with all her might. Unlike Taro's hands, which were leathery and hard, the eel was slimy and soft, and her teeth succeeded in sinking into its flesh, drawing blood not only from the eel but from her own teeth as her gums strained into the effort of literally biting the eel's head off. And Pantyhose Taro screamed in honest to God pain, overriding his pleasures as the tentacles retreated._

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The crystal ball shattered and instead of the void, Andy Wong now stood in the streets of Nerima. He uttered a spell, which was more like a prayer or request, for Heaven's power.

_Give me strength, oh God, great and powerful,_

_The light of the heavens, the smite of thy fury,_

_HOLY SHOCK OF HEAVEN!_

The clear skies instantly turned dark cloudy and erupted in lightning and thunderstorms. Then a particularly massive one struck Andy Wong's outstretched hand, who redirected it at Taro's while leaving his hand unblemished, just as Andy Wong used the force to literally rip off the tale and tentacles that connected him and Kasumi. The cursed boy did not even see the lightning coming as he was too engrossed in the pain of his torn appendages. It struck him squarely on his left side and threw him into a nearby office building, smashing three walls before he came to a stop. Before Kasumi dropped to the floor, Andy Wong flash-stepped to her and caught her in his arms. He had taken off his white coat and wrapped Kasumi's body in the fabric.

Kasumi spat out the eel's head from her mouth and looked at the eyes of one she had not seen in seven years.

**Author's note**

The scene will now shift back to the real world.

**End Author's note**

Kasumi's eyes opened and she once again, looked into the depths of Andy Wong's eyes. Andy Wong then laid Kasumi's on her feet. "Kasumi, look behind you," he said quietly.

She did and gasped. For standing only a few yards from them, was Kimiko Tendo. She was dressed in white robes and a bright light seemed to glow from her body. "Okasan…." Kasumi stammered, then looked at Andy Wong. This time, he was smiling and said, "go to her Kasumi, this is no dream."

Kasumi walked to her mother slowly but her heart was lit as Kimiko Tendo and extended her arms. She ran into Kimiko's arms and for the second time since her mother's death, embraced her once again. Kasumi wept as she felt her mum, more real than when she was in her own fantasy world.

"My dear Kasumi, you've grown so beautiful?" Kimiko sighed as she stroked Kasumi's brown hair.

"But how are you here? You passed away seven years ago," Kasumi said.

Kimiko smiled then beckoned Kasumi to look at Andy Wong. "You have made a more special friend that you can imagine. To put is simply, he asked God to let me come down temporarily to help you. You were about to go insane so to speak, completely closed to the outside world after your ordeal"

Kasumi's eyes were filled with shame at her weakness. "Okasan, I…."

"Shhhhh, its OK. You are as human as anyone else, neither better nor worse. There is nothing to be ashamed about. Just be thankful that you were blessed with a great friend whom you helped so many years ago."

Andy Wong now moved towards the two and to Kasumi's shock, he kowtowed to Kasumi and Kimiko.

"Forgive me Kasumi, for making you violating your mind, and force you to relive your terrible ordeal again. And to you Kimiko Tendo for disturbing your eternal rest," he said as his head touched the ground in prostration.

Kasumi moved to Andy Wong and asked him to rise again. "There is nothing to forgive for you. You've done the greatest thing anyone has ever done, a chance to meet my mother and show me my strength. I should be the one kneeling to you," she stammered.

Andy Wong smiled. "Consider it as small down payment for your act of kindness in ages past as well. You have no idea how much you helped me when you offered me your hanky Kasumi."

She was about to speak some more when the light of Kimiko's aura started fading. She turned to find that Kimiko form was fading. "Oka-san, please, do you have to leave so soon? Can you not stay to see Akane?" she cried as she ran and held her mother's hands.

Kimiko smiled. "She has already grown up beyond my expectations since the night Ranma left. There is nothing more to worry about Akane, Kasumi. It was you and Nabiki that I have been most worried about. You must change the Nabiki's frozen heart before it destroys her humanity. Be strong Kasumi. And continue to forge your own destiny…." Kimiko said as she faded more and more until Kasumi's hands which had tightly clenched Kimiko's hands gripped thin air and held only her own hands. Kasumi's saw Kimiko smile before she finally faded into nothingness. Kasumi looked at her hands and cried as she realised that this time, her mother was gone forever and she would not meet her until her death. For she knew, that Andy Wong would never summon her mother like that again.

Andy Wong left Kasumi alone, to pour out her sadness. It was this way that the five captains and Akane.

"What did you do to my sister!" Akane shouted as she fell into an attack posture.

"Akane, stand down. That's Andy Wong, our Jedi Lord. And I believe the one that did anything to Kasumi was that," Ranma pointed to the charred cursed form that was Pantyhose Taro.

Akane ran to her sister and tried to comfort her sister. Ranma looked at the charred form and eventually recognised it as Pantyhose Taro. "What did he do to Kasumi, my lord?" he asked quietly.

"He had several men attack her, stripped her then forced her to perform oral sex on his tail," Andy said.

Ranma looked at Pantyhose Taro. "I don't suppose any of you left your attackers alive?"

The other four captains shook their heads.

"Then sadly, its Taro's lucky day. We'll have to keep him alive for interrogation later," Ranma said as he clicked on his communicator for Yoruichi.

"Yoruichi, get the ship here, stealth mode. We've got a prisoner to take back to the _Destiny's Forge_, for healing and interrogation.

Then the five captains gathered around their lord. "Report," the Jedi Lord said.

Hitsugaya being the tactical analyst and also had been fully briefed telepathically by the other four captains started, "At thirteen hundred hours (1pm) the engineering faculty of Nerima community college was bombed via the use of what we suspect to be at least a block of C4 explosives. The resulting damage has killed an estimated three hundred people inside the building instantly and injured another five hundred in the surroundings. Ranma was able to prevent any more deaths by healing all those who were still alive after the bombing."

"At the same time, multiple groups of mercenaries attacked all the martial artists groups in Nerima as well as the police station at Nerima. The communications to the outside were cut as well. The attack was carefully orchestrated and the attackers had concealed their chi so well that we only detected them when they started their attacks. I suspect they had powerful martial artist or sorcerers among them to conceal their chi as most of our attackers were not extraordinary martial artists."

"Cypher and myself were in the process of installing a sensor net around Nerima since morning and when the attack manifested, we rushed to the college but later I sensed Kasumi being attacked. From then on, we headed towards Kasumi's direction and were attacked by at least three groups, all armed with firearms and at least one properly trained martial artist among them."

"Jaina and Neji were at the Amazons restaurant known as Cat Café and were also attacked. The group that attacked them was by far larger and were lead by a full force of thirty powerful martial artists, equal to perhaps a Jedi knight of the Old Republic. It's clear they designated the Amazons as the greatest threat and assigned their forces accordingly. Jaina and Neji assisted the Amazon elder known as Cologne and male warrior known as Mouse deal with the attack."

"Shortly after, we detected your psychic presence appear out of nowhere and you uttered the Ultimate Lightning spell. From there we hurried to finish our fights but we encountered several more attack groups along the way and had to liberate some of the dojos as well. Which was ultimately the cause of our delay. Forgive us Master Wong," Hitsugaya bowed as did the other four captains.

"It is OK, I won't punish you for not assigning one of yourselves to Kasumi. I think we relied too much on her bumbling father and Ranma's father. We'll have to talk to them later," Andy said.

At that moment, the air shimmered and a ship deactivated its cloaking shroud that rendered the vessel invisible. The ship landed and the ramp on its underside opened and out of it, ran Yoruichi. Instead of the casual clothes that she wore on Earth, she was now dressed in a white suit of power armour that covered her whole body but still managed to convey her sexy body. She carried a large blaster rifle slung over her back and equipped on her two wrists, were three long claws each, known as Lightning claws, power weapons that could slice through nearly any metal and could only be resisted by energy shields.

"Yoruichi, detain that beast in the cargo hold. And arm yourself when you're with him. Give him the minimal medical attention he needs. I want him healthy enough to withstand a full interrogation by the Fallen Angels Chaplains later," Ranma instructed.

She nodded and then proceeded to drag Pantyhose Taro by one of his mutilated tentacles into the ship. After a while, the ship cloaked itself and vanished from sight.

"So this is what this is all about. The great Saotome Ranma has returned. And with some friends," a voice said from atop a building.

The six captains looked up to see Herb, Prince of the Musk standing on top of the building. Ranma's aura flashed an icy blue when he saw the same cursed person as he was smirking at the destruction Nerima had just suffered.

"So this is all of your doing!" Ranma shouted at Herb.

"Well, Kasumi is a fine prize. But I wash my hands of her ordeal. That was Happosai's idea. I wanted to annihilate the Amazons but noooooo…, he had to send his greatest champion, Pantyhose Taro to kidnap a simple woman when any of our slaving gangs could have done so. And it looks like he nearly spoilt Kasumi before Happosai can taste her succulent assets," Herb licked his lips as he looked at Kasumi's cleavage from above the 5 storey building.

Cypher pointed his Bolt Pistol at Herb. "I do not know who you are, or who you serve, but your mistaken if you think you can show your face to all of us here and escape alive. Surrender now and we'll spare your life."

"Oh dear, there's six of you, and one of me, and it seems like all of you are superb martial artists. So why is it that I'm appearing before you almost unperturbed by your power?"

Realisation and shock slowly dawned before everyone.

"Because you have the second Tendo sister as hostage," Andy Wong said softly.

To be continued.

**Author's notes**

Kindly forward any inconsistencies that you might have noticed but I haven't. I'm aware that I completely forgotten about the men who had surrounded Kasumi earlier (I'll amend the Chapter 8 so that they'll be struck by the lightning spell) and nearly forgot Nabiki as well. All other comments and reviews are appreciated. Thanks for reading guys.

In case none of you have noticed since Chapter One, there is a dagger shaped spaceship of 1.6 kilometre still hanging around the moon. Its an Imperial Star Destroyer called _Destiny's Forge_, the flagship of Jaina Organa Solo's Mobile Armour squadron.


	12. Chapter 10:Even Captains have oversights

**Disclaimer**

Yes yes, I don't own any of the characters stated in this story except for the nameless minions as well as my very own character, Andy Wong. Warhammer 40,000, Ranma, Bleach and Star Wars characters, logos, phrases and weapons belong to their respective owners, not me.

**Author's rants**

My apologies everyone for the extremely late update. I've had writer's block for awhile now and am moreover overloaded with work at my job. This chapter will just set the stone rolling for Nabiki's rescue and as such, will be a two parter. I hope you will be satisfied with this for the time being. As always, reviews are much needed and welcome.

Speaking of which, I don't really want to scold any of you, but if you have nothing constructive to say about my story, don't say it. And by constructive I mean more than telling me to update every time. A review is supposed to help me know whether I have properly composed my story. Some of you didn't even express whether you like it or not. Just asking me to update tells me nothing of how you feel about the story.

So please, don't just tell me to update. This story will continue as long as I have ideas and people in this fan fiction community support me. And by supporting me, I don't just mean positive reviews but negative ones as well. As long as it your review enables me to go forward in my story or amend my story for mistakes.

**Chapter 10: Even Captains have oversights**

Realisation slowly dawned on everyone and Kasumi screamed, "Where is Nabiki? What have you done to her!"

"No need to shout. Actually we didn't kidnap her. She contacted us a few days ago and arranged a meeting to discuss about Happosai. She thought she could negotiate a deal with us. Sadly, she is also part of the package we've promised Happosai in exchange for his help in defeating the Amazons. Don't get me wrong, I did give her a chance to negotiate out of the deal. But you're just not rich enough. And since she didn't offer herself to fulfil the deal, we had to help ourselves."

"No, you didn't…." Kasumi whispered.

"Enough," Andy's word was said softly but everybody from Akane to Hitsugaya felt the terrible wrath that Andy was holding back. "I've already guessed the answer but I ask you this. What do you want?"

Herb was taken aback and was also shaken by Andy's words but managed to steel himself and went back to gloating. "Personally, I want to destroy Ranma. Destroy everything he loves, and yes, I have always known that he loved Akane despite how much they would deny it. And as a last personal touch, permanently curse him as a girl and be my slave forever. But, I do have leadership duties to my tribe and one of those duties is the defeat of the Amazons. Damn their skills in martial arts. Sadly we lack the army to fight them, and Happosai is going to help get that army."

"Let me guess, summoning demon spawns to do your dirty work."

"I see you've been spying on us for awhile now. If your that powerful, makes me wonder why you let all of this happened. So the deaths are probably on your head," Herb said mockingly at Andy Wong.

"If its me you want, then you have me. Just return Nabiki safely. She and Kasumi has done nothing to you. It was all me, your quarrel is with me remember?" Ranma shouted.

"How noble of you. Perhaps Kasumi would like to offer herself in exchange for her sister's life and virginity?"

Before both could answer, Andy Wong had disappeared and re-appeared behind Herb. The Prince of the Musk turned around in time to see a massive fist impact on his face and catapulted him into the ground, creating a small crater. Herb barely had time to recover when the next thing he knew, were three slashes made on his face, creating three long scars on his face. He screamed in pain and barely registered that Andy Wong was standing before him. Protruding out of his right arm, were three blades that exited between his knuckles.

"This is our answer. And know this, if Nabiki does suffer greatly under your touch, your life will be forfeit. Tell Happosai that this is his first warning to cease this nonsense. If he does not, I and my Captains will strike with deadly force. You think that Ranma was strong two years ago in your reckoning. His power then is nothing compared to now. Release Nabiki and know that we will not wage a war that will exterminate your entire tribe," Andy Wong said.

"How dare you…" but Herb shrank back as Andy flared his aura and aimed it directly at Herb. To Herb, feeling Andy's aura felt like he was being buried alive in a blizzard, ice cold, heavy and almost could not breath. For the first time in his life, he felt great fear at the terrible power Andy displayed. He desperately tried to breath and could only take a few short breaths.

"Tell Happosai that I love Ranma as my son. And I'll be damned if I let him ruin his well deserved happiness," and with that, Andy switched off his aura.

The prince of the Musk took in huge gulps of air. Looking fearfully at Andy Wong, he did not move until Andy looked away. Only then did Herb fled.

"I will follow him," Neji said and he disappeared to track Herb.

Just then Kasumi came up to Andy. And she slapped him.

"What did you just do? You knew Nabiki is a hostage yet you did all that to him! What will happen to my sister now!" she cried.

Andy Wong looked at Kasumi in the eye. "They will preserve Nabiki's virtue for now. Happosai is still in China and she will not come to significant harm as their hostage. And Neji is more than capable of rescuing her himself."

Akane folded her arms. "Define significant oh great Jedi Lord," she mocked.

"Akane…" Ranma started to say warningly.

"Neji will save her. There is nothing on this Earth that can defeat him short of myself and the other Captains. You've met with Neji these past few days. If you cannot trust me, trust in him."

He turned to the remaining captains. "Ranma and I will escort the Tendos home. Cypher and Hitsugaya will cleanse Nerima of the invaders. Jaina, you will assist the Amazons. By twenty hundred hours, I want all of you at the Tendo dojo. Hopefully, Neji will be back with Nabiki by then."

"And lastly Cypher, I would request squad of Jedi Knights to Deep Strike at the Tendo Dojo right now. I leave it to your judgement to include any Fallen Angels. I don't know where their forces will strike next but I won't let anyone be surprised like that again."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

As they walked towards the Dojo, Andy was leading the way while Kasumi and Akane walked hand in hand with Ranma directly behind them.

"Onechan, he didn't do anything perverted to you did he?" Akane said, eyeing Andy suspiciously. Ranma took this as a relic of Akane's troubled high school with the Hentai Squad that attacked her every morning. Especially when Andy Wong, when you didn't look him straight in the face, looked very young, perhaps that of an 18 year old at best.

Kasumi fell silent, recounting her reunion with her mother. She kept debating on whether to tell Akane or not. "He saved my life and my dignity Akane. And the only thing I ever did for him was to give him my handkerchief."

Ranma and Akane were surprised. "You've met him/my master before?" both said at the same time.

"Yes, nine years ago shortly after Okasan's death, I met him in the park. And he was crying loudly right in the middle of a busy park. He seemed so sad, like I was feeling even after a month had passed since Okasan's funeral. So I gave him a handkerchief."

"Our Jedi Lord crying, that I can believe. He's not a macho man Akane. Tears unnumbered he has shed and more will be shed by the time this ordeal is over," Ranma said.

"Then what did you do? Did he befriend you?" Akane asked.

"Yes. But all he did was to buy me an ice-cream and carry my shopping home. Now I know we're not supposed to talk to strangers Akane. But you have not seen his eyes before. I can hardly describe them, incredible wells as deep as the ocean, filled with knowledge and experience to make any man weary. We didn't need to talk. All we had to do was look straight into each other's eyes to look into our hearts. And I didn't even need to tell him about Okasan's death for him to understand," Kasumi sighed as she remembered the brief walk with Andy all those years ago, even though she was a kid at the time.

Akane and Ranma looked at each other. Kasumi had just spouted a romantic line and she didn't know it. "Well, all I can say is that my lord is a righteous person and I'm sure that your simple act meant a great deal to him. Hell, if like me there's nothing more he enjoys apart from a good fight than a good meal."

Kasumi's eyes lit up. "Perhaps I should cook a special meal tonight."

"Absolutely not Kasumi," Andy said more than 20 paces ahead of them startling the Tendo sisters who thought he was out of earshot. "I do not expect you to serve me after that ordeal. Ranma will give you a full medical checkup before you do anything and Akane is going to help Ranma. After that you will rest, either by talking to Ranma and Akane or sleeping. I will take care of your food needs. I assure you I'm quite adept at cooking."

They reached the Tendo Dojo and standing in front of the house, were five men and women dressed in brown robes that flowed nearly to the ground and each wore white clothes inside. "Secure the perimeter and make sure that the sensor net that Captain Cypher and Captain Hitsugaya was installing this morning is made operational before Zero Hundred hours. If you see any of those attackers, capture them," Andy ordered. The five Jedi Knights bowed and disappeared.

"Ranma, you know what to do," Andy said as they entered the dojo.

"Yes my lord," Ranma said as Andy entered the kitchen. He turned to Kasumi. "C'mon Kasumi-chan, let's get you cleaned up."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

By midnight, Nerima bore a resemblance of peace again. Except that it was the peace of a mourning population. The most grief was concentrated at the Nerima College. Three hundred students were dead, but because of Ranma, the wounded numbered less, only a dozen students were wounded and none in critical condition. All over Nerima, at least 30 dojos and martial artists homes had been attacked. Nearly 400 martial artists were dead. The Nerima Police Department counted 25 policemen dead and another 120 wounded. Nearly every shop had been ransacked.

Despite the chaos Nerima attracted, its citizens were too unfamiliar with the concept of death before their very eyes. And losing three hundred students in one day caused a chain reaction of grief. If they had not been so busy grieving, they might have noticed the four mysterious figures saving their lives many times by slaughtering their attackers.

By Hitsugaya's count, the attackers paid with 289 of their number. It was too small, not even more than the number of students who were dead.

"NO NO NO, GET AWAY FROM ME, EEEEEEEEAAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!" a sickening squelch was heard as Cypher smashed his foot into a mercenary's head, squishing it into a pulp.

_Make that 290, _Hitsugaya thought to himself.

"They are gone. The rest of their number has fled. They've covered their chi again. I can't sense them anymore," the boy-captain stated.

Cypher looked at the burnt shops and wrecked homes. "By the Emperor, they shall know his wrath. But I don't understand this. They've done little more than ransack the city, almost like an Ork Waaagh. They've done nothing more than cause chaos and for what? They didn't even focus their looting on the local banks even though they killed off the guards."

"I don't know, Cypher. As illogical as it may seem, Kasumi seems to be the key to this mystery. Its almost like everyone was distracted so that abomination known as Pantyhose Taro could kidnap Kasumi."

"Your right, it is illogical. All this for one girl?" Cypher exclaimed.

Hitsugaya raised his eyebrows. "Don't tell me in the history of your Imperium, no leader fell because of feminine wiles?"

"Not really. Even the blasphemous Emperor's Children Chaos Marines seem more interested in torture and experimentation on helpless subjects rather than raping women. And I can say that no Space Marine has ever been seduced by a woman."

The white haired boy shook his head. Then his head jerked up. "Master Wong is calling us. Kasumi is awake and they've prepared some food for us."

Just then, they heard sounds from a nearby jewellery shop. The store's attackers had already been destroyed, so it surprised them that someone actually dared to go back to loot. Cypher took out his Bolter pistol but Hitsugaya hushed him and motioned for him to use _**Force Sight**._When he did so, Cypher and Hitsugaya were looking at a fat man dressed in a white gi in the shop, greedily stuffing his gi with the jewels. He had cloaked himself using a chi-technique known as **_Force Shroud_**.

"Saotome Genma," the two said when they had crept up right behind him.

"Urk," Genma intelligently said when he turned around and saw the hulking figure of Cypher who even managed to make his panda form look small. His face moved upwards at Cypher's battle scarred face and it was not a pleasant expression sitting there.

"Ooi, look down here," a voice came from his waist and what he saw made him even

paler. Hitsugaya had his sword pointing at Genma's belly.

"Mercy, mercy, there's plenty for all of us, I'm sure we can come to some suitable arrangement. Come little boy, I'm sure we can find something suitable even for you," Genma stuttered.

Cypher winced. Calling Hitsugaya a little boy was like poking a sleeping tiger with your finger.

Hitsugaya's eyebrow twitched and his aura flared a raging red. He snorted and slashed Genma's gi so fast that the one moment Genma was wearing his Gi, the next he was half naked with his gi in a hundred pieces on the floor, along with the jewels he had tried to stuff his gi shirt with.

Cypher's hand found Genma's throat. "Question time, where were you this afternoon?"

"What? Why, I was staying home doing nothing, just minding my own business," Genma stammered. "In fact, I just came out for a walk when I came on this shop that seemed to open its doors to me and welcomed me," he said.

The Space Marine's hand squeezed, making it harder for Genma to breathe. "Wrong answer. You were suppose to be going to Nerima College with Kasumi and Soun. You left Kasumi behind. Did you know what happened to her?"

"No, what? Nobody would hurt Kasumi," Genma gasped as Cypher eased his grip.

"WRONG. KASUMI WAS NEARLY RAPED. RAPE YOU HEAR! DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF THAT WORD!" the Space Marine bellowed.

Genma's eyes went wide with horror. "But how, when, where… oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god…."

"Yes, only your God and our Jedi Lord's will be able to save you from your negligence. Now you are coming with us back to the Tendo Dojo. And when you see **_CAPTAIN RANMA _**you will treat him with respect and address him as Captain or Sir. If you do not…" Cypher took a piece of concrete with his other hand and crushed it in his fingers... "this is what will happen to your throat. And believe me, all of us can see through your pathetic chi invisibility."

The Saotome patriarch could only say, "yes yes yes yes" while nodding his head as fast as he could.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Akane watched as Ranma examined Kasumi, who lay naked on her bed and couldn't believe that she was not malleting Ranma into the sky. She still had to fight the urge despite Ranma examining Kasumi with great care and delicacy which rivalled, if not totally outdid Dr. Tofu's medical skills, especially when it came to her vagina. More astonishing was that Ranma wasn't even blushing or had any expression for that matter. After awhile, he applied some sort of thick liquid out of a small container he had in his pocket and rubbed it against Kasumi's face, hands, legs, and breasts where Taro had roughly squeezed earlier. Only after that did he say, "All done Kasumi. You're bruises will disappear in 5 minutes. Don't worry Kasumi, Pantyhose freak hasn't done any permanent damage on you," Ranma said quietly.

Kasumi stood from her bed and started wearing a bathrobe. "Thank you Ranma."

"One-chan, are you OK? I mean, what exactly did Taro do to you?" Akane pressed her sister.

"Don't ask Akane. When she wants to tell, she will tell. Now help Kasumi take a bath. I'm going to help Master Wong."

"I'm not asking you baka," Akane said angrily but was cut short when Kasumi said, "I don't want to tell you Akane. At least not now."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ranma entered the kitchen where Andy was frying some vegetables and chopped chicken breasts. "How is Kasumi?" Andy asked.

"Clean bill of health. Taro didn't go all the way," Ranma replied as he took some raw salmon and began slicing it.

"Master, what's going on? Are we in danger of epic proportions?"

"We maybe. Turns out your Happosai knows quite a bit about demons. Which by itself, wouldn't be dangerous to us but he worships one of the four great chaos gods."

Ranma frowned. "Aren't those supposed to be native to Cypher's universe? Or are these like alternate versions which come from my universe?"

"As far as I can tell, they are nearly identical. I destroyed a bloodletter of Khorne the blood god yesterday and he bore the same signature as one from Cypher's universe. I fear for your planet now Ranma. Happosai most likely thinks he can bargain with the chaos gods but in the end, he will end up their pawn and slave, not equal partners of a deal. And if he keeps summoning demons through his spells, eventually the fabric of reality will become more and more blurred until hell literally comes to Earth.

"Damn it, just my luck. I come home and straight away, Armageddon is going to happen. Well, this will be the last time. I swear I won't rest until I've taken care of Herb, Happosai, Taro and every other jerk who disrupts my life!" Ranma slammed his fist on the table.

Andy tested the miso soup before putting the lid back on the pot. "You are not alone Ranma. Do not waste the rest of your youth on something as pathetic as vengeance. I gather that Akane was still waiting for you when you came back?"

Ranma breathed deeply a few times to get his temper back in control. "Yes. I love her and I'll be damned if Happosai gets his hands on her. Or Kasumi and Nabiki." His eyes shot up suddenly. "Are you really sure that Nabiki will be alright? And will Neji be alright? I've never fought a demon before come to think of it."

"If you mean completely unharmed, I don't know. I fear that this Nabiki tried to talk her way out of this mess only to find out she's one of the grand prizes for Happosai. As for Neji, only a greater Daemon which is a mortal who has been blessed by one or more chaos gods through worship and horrendous atrocities for hundreds of years can pose a match for Neji, or anyone of us for that matter. Lessed demons will be cakewalks for us after our war with the Yuuzhan Vong.

Ranma looked out of the window at the star studded sky. "If your not sure that Nabiki will be safe, why did you so recklessly make that promise to Kasumi?"

Andy stopped stirring the vegetables for a moment. "I don't know. I have to have faith in Neji that he'll rescue her before anything bad happens."

To be continued….

OK, as I said earlier, I've got a bad case of writer's block. So from now on, please send in your ideas to my personal mail. In particular, I'm trying to figure a way to bring Nodoka into the story as well. So please send your opinions and ideas, especially on how to defeat the Jedi Captains as I think I've made them too powerful.

Thank you all for reading.


	13. Chapter 11: Ice Queen Rescue

**Disclaimer**

Yes yes, I don't own any of the characters stated in this story except for the nameless minions as well as my very own character, Andy Wong. Warhammer 40,000, Ranma, Bleach and Star Wars characters, logos, phrases and weapons belong to their respective owners, not me.

To add to the list above, I do not own Kagutsuchi and Duran of Mai Hime as well.

**Author's rants**

To all Nabiki lovers, I'm truly sorry. Actually, to everyone I'm truly sorry, because all three Tendos are going to suffer.

**Chapter 11: Ice Queen Rescue**

Herb was the ultimate master of chi-manipulation on this Earth. This granted him certain powers that seemed godlike, like the ability to fly. This skill was not privy to 2nd Jedi Captain Hyuuga Neji but even on the ground, his speed combined with his enhanced eyesight allowed him to keep track Herb through the air. He raced with Herb towards the northeast part of Japan. When Herb continued to fly towards the sea, Neji used the Force to walk on the waters of the Pacific Ocean. Eventually, in the middle of the sea, Neji saw a small fleet of 8 submarines emerge from the sea.

He dived into the ocean and swam his way to the submarines. The crewmen received the prince with medical aids as they tended to his wounds. While they were busy with Herb, Neji managed to distract one of the crew men to look over the starboard side. His curiosity was rewarded with quick death as Neji's hand grabbed the crewman and killed him instantly by launching a massive chi attack at his nervous system, literally frying his brain and nerves. When the man died, Neji used the Force to pick up the man's knowledge. Silently and as quick as lightning, Neji unclothed the crewman, threw him overboard, put on the clothes and then activated his Changeling Device, a technology that generated a holographic disguise over his real features, turning him into the dead crewman. All this he did in less than 10 seconds before another crewman turn around and asked him to come and help.

Neji grinned in his mind when he saw Herb's face. A direct punch from Andy Wong was nothing to laugh at, and it was obvious Herb was going to need plastic surgery to bear any resemblance to normal again. After applying some bandages, they went into the submarine. Fortuntely, Neji had once studied ancient Earth history and was familiar with the layout of the submarine. The submarine appeared to be a top-line diesel powered submarines made by the former Soviet Union. It did not look like a Chinese design although China imported most of its military technology from the former Soviet Union at one time.

As it turned out, he had killed one of the submarine's sailors which were assigned as personal attendants to the Prince, which meant he also had to help the ship doctor to administer to Herb's wounds. He was sorely tempted to kill Herb there and then but Neji still had to find Nabiki. Moreover, Neji's combat skills were ill-suited to the cramp corridors of the submarine. And he couldn't summon his secret weapon in the ocean either. So he helped the ship doctor bandage Herb's face. The Prince was in pain but he bore it all by concentrating on his anger, which dimmed the pain.

After finally bandaging Herb's face, the doctor asked Herb to get a plastic surgeon to do the rest. Herb grudgingly asked the captain of the submarine to ask book a surgeon in China upon his arrival. Then he turned towards Neji and another sailor.

"Bring the Ice Queen bitch to my quarters in 5 minutes. Make sure she is, properly prepared for me," for the first time the attack, Herb grinned wickedly underneath his bandages.

Neji's companion, a tall Chinese man called Wan Ki, motioned for Neji to follow him. He followed and chatted with the Musk, who was fortunately, quiet and professional. They were heading towards what Neji figured to be a brig. Wan Ki opened a hatch which revealed a long corridor that had housed holding cells. At the fifth cell from the door, Neji saw Nabiki.

The cell was completely bare, with no toilet or cot. Apparently it was useless because the occupant wouldn't have been able to use then. Nabiki was lying on the floor, naked and bound. She was blindfolded and gagged with a ball gag and her arms had been tied back in a way that her arms from the hands to the elbow were bound together with rope. This forced her to arch her back in a most uncomfortable manner as well as puff out her chest forward. She had a collar around her neck and a chain was attached to a ring in the wall. Her feet were manacled with iron thongs.

Their arrival set her in a panic and she struggled to the furthest corner of the cell. Neji looked at her body and while it did not look like she had been raped, she had certainly been man-handled roughly, far worse than Kasumi. As Wan Ki and he entered the cell, he saw that Nabiki's body was also sticky with a substance that Neji identified to be semen and sperm. Apparently despite Happosai's order to have all the Tendo sisters unspoiled, the Musk tribe still managed to have fun with Nabiki's body without spoiling the actual fruit. She screamed and thrashed as Wan Ki grabbed her roughly by her hair, forcing her to stand while he unlocked the collar from her neck. He snarled as Nabiki continued her thrashing and gave her a tight slap that sent her quivering and shivering on the ground. "Be silent or believe me, your ordeal will be worse before you even see the Master Happosai."

"Pick her up, Man Ki, we've got to clean up the bitch," he said as he walked out of the cell. "And give her something to keep her quiet," he ordered.

"I don't know what will keep her quiet but I think this will keep you quiet," Neji said. Wan Ki turned around and saw looked at him quizzically. And Neji 's disguise dissolved and he gave him a deadly gaze. He focused every ounce of hate, contempt, anger and most of all the intent to kill in his eyes which Wan Ki now stared into. And Wan Ki saw the fate that awaited him and befell upon him 20 seconds after he looked at Neji's eyes. He not only saw, but felt the himself dying in the foulest of ways of dying over and over again in his eyes, never ending and always restarting with a vision of an even slower and agonizing death. And he couldn't tear his eyes of Neji nor scream for Neji rushed forward and slammed Wan Ki against the wall, his hand on Wan Ki's mouth stifling his screams. In 20 seconds, he had gone over no fewer than two hundred tortures that each lasted lifetime. When Neji released his hand, Wan Ki collapsed on the floor, catatonic and shaking as though he was in seizure as he relived the tortures again and again.

Neji turned and tried to untie Nabiki but the moment he touched her body, she gave a muffled shriek and scrambled away from him, somehow managing to get on her feet and running to the other end of the corridor, which was a dead end. Neji sighed and used the Force to levitate Nabiki in mid air. The middle Tendo sister was now even more afraid and confused as she kicked and moved about in mid air. He pulled Tendo sister to himself and once her feet was on the ground, firmly gripped Nabiki's shoulders. "Shhhhhh, its me, Neji," he said as he used one hand to remove the blindfold.

Nabiki's eyes were blinded as her eyes were finally exposed after many hours of imprisonment. For once, the fear, confusion and panic that had enveloped her mind since her imprisonment was replaced by her natural curiosity and analysing nature. She stopped struggling briefly and attempted to focus on the figure before her. As she finally identified it to be Neji, she gave another muffled cry and leaned against his body. Neji quickly undid the bindings on her hands and elbows but as she tried to hug Neji, she cried with pain as her arms had been twisted in an unnatural position for so long. Neji did not remove the gag just yet but gently massaged her strained biceps and triceps until she could move them forward somewhat again.

"Listen to me Nabiki," he said as he tilted Nabiki's head to look into his eyes. "We are not out of this yet. We are deep inside a submarine and there are many places we must pass before getting out. I was instructed to bring you to Herb but we'll try to sneak out of the submarine now. I am going to change my looks to look like that guard," he pointed at Wan Ki "and then we'll bluff our way out. I'm afraid you'll have to remain undressed, blindfolded and gagged though. These people are sadistic and if I treat you any better than what they're accustomed to treating their women, its going to look suspicious." Her eyes widened and she tried to remove the gag to protest but he held her hands. "Please Nabiki, I won't mistreat your body. Trust me. I'll only tie your hands loosely _in front of you. _Then I'll carry you over my shoulder. That will be good enough, at least until we reach Herb's quarters."

Nabiki had little choice but to do as Neji planned. Using the rope that bound her arms earlier, Neji cut it into a smaller cord and loosely bound her wrists in them. Before he replaced the blindfold though, he covered Nabiki's eyes with his hands and muttered a few words which Nabiki did not understand. But when he removed his hand, Nabiki found that she was staring at herself. She cried as she saw how dirty she looked but was shocked when he saw hands lift up and gently blindfolded her, just as she felt the cloth covering her eyes even though she could still see.

"Let me be your eyes for now," she heard Neji say and then she understood. She was looking through Neji's eyes even through the blindfold. She saw and felt him lifting her up and slinging her over his shoulder gently. He then walked up to Wan Ki, picked him up and then threw him into the cell furthest from the door.

"I touched his mind before he became insane. He and about 20 others used your body to pleasure themselves. He will not do so again," he said simply and Nabiki felt a quiet sense of satisfaction of revenge being fulfilled.

He carried her out and started walking not towards the bridge area but towards the torpedo launch bays. As he met crew members along the way, they all smiled and cat called at Nabiki. Neji begrudged them a smile that Prince Herb had decided to grant the weapons crew a few hours of using Nabiki. There were some suspicious minds but Neji also used the Force to numb their suspicions and turn their minds towards their own business.

When he reached the torpedo launch bay, he found a few sailors performing maintenance on the weapons systems. They all dropped what they were doing at the sight of Neji carrying the Nabiki and rushed forward to have a look at the prize. A glare from Neji held them from grabbing the Tendo girl from his grasp though. "Stand at attention, have you forgotten you dignity for some pussy!" he barked as the men fell back in line. Sighing, he laid Nabiki on her feet and promptly disconnected her vision from his. Nabiki made a noise as her eyes returned to blackness. "It's better you don't see this." He then closed the hatch to the torpedo room.

Then she heard some sort of hiss and then a lot of screaming that promptly died 5 seconds after they started. She then felt a large coat being placed over her shoulders as well as the blindfold and gag removed. She looked around expecting to see the crew dead but saw no trace of them, except for the faint smell of burnt flesh in the air. Neji had taken of his Captain's coat and covered her with it, which she buttoned to cover the rest of her body.

"Come now, into the torpedo hatch."

Nabiki looked at Neji. "What?"

Neji said, "This is the easiest way out. We're launching out of the submarine via the torpedo hatch.

"ARE YOU INSANE!" she shouted looking at the small torpedo hatch. Actually it wasn't that small, it was almost like that of a morgue freezer, enough for one body. Two actually if one could squeeze in. Then she heard someone banging on the hatch.

"Too late for another plan, I just sensed Herb realising that your missing. And my skills are ill suited for this cramped environment," he said then promptly picked up Nabiki and pushed her inside the torpedo hole.

"Your crazy, I am not… Ooomph!" she shouted as Neji squeezed into the hatch with her. He then used the Force to close the hatch behind them just as the door burst open with several Musk guards. He then looked at the seal above them. "What now you crazy asshole! You've locked us in! Who's gonna fire…"

"Be silent. And hold your breath. It is going to be cold out there and you must not pass out," Neji warned as he took out a Bolt Pistol, like that used by Cypher's Space Marines. They fired armour piercing explosive shells.

"Wait, shouldn't we…." Nabiki said intelligently as Neji fired the Bolt Pistol.

The round embedded itself into the three inch thick seal and then exploded. At once, the waters of the Pacific Ocean rushed into the torpedo hatch. Neji gave a kick at the torpedo hatch and propelled himself and Nabiki out of the torpedo hole. Nabiki was still shocked and clung unto Neji tightly. He managed to loosen himself and got Nabiki to hang from his shoulder instead as he swam out to the surface. Fortunately the submarine had not submerged yet and the surface was only a short distance away.

They broke through the surface and Nabiki breathed in huge gulps of air. Neji looked at the submarine and saw that it was deploying several speed boats to go after them. And then Neji saw Herb flying into the air and towards them. His hands now held energy swords made entirely of his own chi and this time, he was dressed in a battle armour that looked like dragon scales.

"I don't know who are you are but at least your alone. Now I can test my strength against one of Ranma's friends," Herb said as he charged at Neji.

Neji sighed. He wanted a good fight but unfortunately, he had someone to protect and that would hamper his joy of a good fight.

"Kagutsuchi," he summoned. At once the space between them and Herb became a fiery ball. And out of that fire came a being unlike anything the world had ever seen.

If it was a dragon, it was unlike any dragon a human had ever envisioned. It had no scales and had smooth white skin, almost like metal. It had a long slender neck like that of a swan and the head was like that of a killer whale. It had no legs but a long flowing tale that was connected to the body. But instead of feathers or batlike wings, the wings looked to be made of fiery energy that stretched out and gave the shape of wings. It had two fore claws which were white yet had claws of gold and these were also connected to the body by the same fiery energy that formed its wings. But the sound that came out of it was not a roar but a whale-like song.

Neji took Nabiki in his arms and propelled himself out of the water and landed on Kagutsuchi's head. Herb was stunned and shocked at the immense size of the creature and did not seem eager to attack it.

"You are lucky that my mission today is not to obliterate you. Now begone from my sight or I will wipe out your pathetic fleet and yourself," Neji barked as he unsheathed his katana Gerbera Straight in his left hand and in his left, a lightsaber was ignited. Kagutsuchi now opened his mouth showing his huge canines. To all who could sense chi or magic, a massive surge was currently accumulating within Kagutsuchi.

Herb grew pensive and looked silently at Neji, Nabiki and Kagutsuchi. And then he laughed, making Nabiki cringe in fear as well as astonishing Neji.

"Very well then, but know that in the end, your weaknesses are the same. I don't know how much your willing to sacrifice for your goals but your **"Good Guy"** mentality will be the death of you. Because in the end, you are encumbered by the peasants you seek to protect. We are not. I don't know what your creature is but do not think I have not seen other beings as powerful as your creature. There are and with them, we can and will defeat you," and with that, he flew back to the submarine.

Kagutsuchi closed his maw and whined at Neji. Neji sighed and finally turned his attention at Nabiki. "Are you alright?" he asked as he knelt beside her.

She looked at him with her ice-queen expression. "Does it look like I'm alright?" she said quietly. For Neji, a former Sith Lord to be chilled by the icy tone of Nabiki was a great feat. He sensed that something had changed in Nabiki and it troubled him. _Better let Kasumi and Akane handle this. Ranma as well. I don't like the way her aura looks_.

For her aura now had the same red colour depression that Ryoga so often exhibited. As well as a touch of black which Neji knew, was the Dark side of the Force.

To be continued.

_I dress myself in full plate armour and hide behind a rock. _OK, now you all can flame me. For both the late update and the torture of Tendo Nabiki. I was toying with many ideas on Nabiki's torment but decided to leave some of it to your imagination. Otherwise, this story might be banned.

Well, one character will be spared from torment. Nodoka is coming to Nerima, in a Land Raider APC escorted by Space Marines. Look out for it. And maybe Happosai gets his hands dirty for once.

Another thing. While I don't like to be told to constantly update, in the case of long periods like this, you can send me personal messages on my progress. I'm working as an auditor and my time can be short for a couple of months sometimes, in which I have no time to think up new ideas. So you guys can check up on me if you feel I'm taking too long to update. Preferably, I would like reviews of course.


	14. Chapter 12: Ice Queen's Hell

**Author's notes:**

Again, to all Nabiki lovers, forgive me.

I've made a small amendment to Chapter 9 where Kasumi's mum expresses concern about Nabiki's current character.

**Chapter 12: The Ice Queen's Hell**

Nabiki and Neji were silent as Kagutsuchi carried them back towards the coast of Japan. Neji tried to read the girl's emotion but Nabiki wasn't broadcasting her thoughts. Her mind was calm and closed and Neji couldn't see what she was thinking without a direct telepathic contact with her mind. When they reached the shore, they dismounted Kagutsuchi which Neji gave a pat on the head. It made the beautiful whale song before fading into nothingness. Nabiki looked unperturbed and indeed, if it were not for her alert eyes, Neji would have though Nabiki had become catatonic.

He prepared a teleportation spell which after 5 minutes, teleported them into the Nerima Dojo.

"Why didn't you do this while we were in the submarine?" Nabiki asked.

"The process takes five minutes. Herb would have sensed immediately and come down on us. The teleportation spell is very risky and cannot be interrupted. I couldn't risk it," he said.

"Fine Captains you all are," Nabiki said as she walked out of the dojo.

She walked to the dining room where Kasumi, Ranma and Akane were seated along with another man she had never seen before.

"Nabiki!" the two Tendo sisters cried as they rushed forth to hug their sister. Nabiki returned their hugs mechanically, something that raised the eyebrows of Andy and Ranma. Both of them by sight and smell already deduced what had happened to her but her current reaction was even more disturbing than Kasumi's after her ordeal. She was practically emotionless but her aura was now like Ryoga's deep red depression.

"Nabiki?" Kasumi released her embrace and finally looked hard at her sister. She then became disturb by Nabiki's aura as well.

Nabiki pushed Akane away from her. "I'm going to take a bath. Then I will rest. Please do not disturb me, I do not wish to talk for the rest of this night."

"Nabiki…" Neji started.

"Especially those who call themselves captains but fail to do anything to prevent this when they are so powerful. Now leave me be," Nabiki said coolly before entering the bathroom.

Kasumi looked in the direction of the bathroom. "Oh God, what have they done to her?" she whispered.

Neji walked into the room. "Suffice to say they stripped her off everything including her dignity and control. These Musk are as sadistic as the Dark Eldar from Cypher's universe."

Kasumi put her hands to her mouth. She ran to the furo and knocked on the door. "Nee san, please, are you OK?"

"Which part of '**_I don't want to be disturbed' _**did you not understand Kasumi? Did you head become full of **_grey mist _**all of a sudden? Or did the dumb act finally become your true character?" a cold voice answered.

Kasumi was shocked. Nabiki normally wouldn't speak this way to her this way. "Nee san…" she whispered.

"Go away. Your presence is not needed."

Ranma stepped up to the furo door. "Nabiki, I need to do a medical check up of you. I need to learn exactly what they did to you."

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU! AND RANMA, YOU BETTER SCRAM BEFORE I REVEAL ALL YOUR SECRETS TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER!" Nabiki roared.

Ranma sighed and then he transformed into his woman form. Kasumi and Akane asked, "Uh, Ranma, why are you changing?"

"Nobody says no when I say a medical checkup is needed," Ranma said before she opened the door to the furo.

What Ranma, Akane and Kasumi saw tore their hearts from their body. Nabiki's body was dirty and now the smell of men hung around her whereas Neji's taichou coat had suppressed the smell. Numerous rope marks cut into her hands, legs and body, especially her small breasts. Virtually every other areas of her flesh was red and swollen, some of which bore scars which did not look like rope marks.

Nabiki screamed, a long piercing scream as the now tall and beautiful redhead entered the bathroom. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING! GO AWAY! HENTAI, BAKA, ERO JI JI, RAPIST, PEDOPHILE!" she started throwing the limited items in the bathroom like the wooden hand bucket, soap, shampoo, detergent bottles, and even Genma's rubber ducky. All of which Ranma caught deftly and set aside. He then took a towel from a rack and approached Nabiki.

"Please Nabiki, let me help you. You've been through a terrible ordeal and I just want to check your body for injuries," Ranma said with surprising tenderness. Akane thought she was imagining things but from the female Ranma, she felt a gentle aura almost like Kasumi's.

"No, go away! I don't need you or anyone! Martial Artists, Jedi, Captains, Space Marines, ALL OF YOU ARE USELESS! So much power, so much knowledge, yet you refuse to do anything but your own pathetic love lives! You were a useless freeloader and you still are a useless freeloader…." Nabiki ranted hysterically. Then as if Nabiki being hysterical wasn't enough, she launched herself at Ranma and with her long fingernails, clawed at Ranma's beautiful face.

Ranma didn't even flinch but tackled Nabiki so that in the end, she (Ranma) held her from behind while Nabiki kept on screaming, "Useless sons of bitchs, I hope you go back to whatever cursed universe you came from so that you can keep on playing soldier! Curse you all! Let me go, let ME GO!"

Kasumi rushed forward and she enveloped Nabiki in a hug, tears running down her face as Nabiki continued releasing her pent up rage and frustration. She understood now. Nabiki had always had control over her life. The last time she lost control like this was when Kimiko Tendo died. And ever since then, she took every pain to make sure that nothing in life was out of her expectations. Even if it meant blackmailing everyone in Nerima.

"Nee san, please stop! We love you and we want to help you," Kasumi cried.

"Cut the bull shit Kasumi! The only people we can rely on are ourselves. These guys are supposed to protect us, they deceived us into thinking they are so powerful yet they failed to protect us! To protect me!"

"Nee san please! We can't expect them to be perfect! Nobody is! Please, whatever they did to you, don't keep it in. It'll will eat you and make you suffer even more than you are now!" Kasumi tried to tell Nabiki.

"Get away from me you air head!" and with that she slapped Kasumi who fell to the floor in a shock.

This was the last straw for Akane. She went up to Nabiki and slapped her back. And it was such a powerful slap that it left a bruise on Nabiki's left cheek, shocking the girl.

"If I slapped my sister every time Ranma failed to protect me, Kasumi would be dead ten times over. I may not be in a position to talk since I was not nearly raped today but I have seen Sayuri and Yuka bleeding in my arms as well as seeing bits and pieces of friends around campus today. But do you see any bruises on Ranma indicating that I malleted him into the sky? Because of Ranma, he saved so many lives that would otherwise have gone in the aftermath. And I know if not for Andy Wong, Ranma's master, that Kasumi would be taken from us now!"

Nabiki's eyes flashed in anger at her younger sister lecturing. "Don't you dare talk to me bitch until you feel what its like to be blindfolded, gagged, stripped naked and then promptly have your body used as a fuck toy! Do you want to know exactly what they did!" she hissed so venomously that Kasumi and Akane were taken aback.

"Breast torture using nipple clips, crabinas, clothes pins, tweezers and electro torture. They also whipped you with leather belts, horse tail whips and spiked whips. They then violated your vagina but did not penetrate them, using various metal objects, some of which have caused cuts which I MUST look into right now. They also used electro-torture on it as well. All this done while you were suspended or otherwise so tightly bound that the rope marks have cut all over your body. And to top it all of, in the whole process you were blindfolded and gagged weren't you?" Ranma said quietly, without a hint of emotion or embarrassment.

Akane and Kasumi's eyes widened as Ranma stated Nabiki's ordeal as though he had been there. Both felt sick in the stomach as they finally began to have an idea of what Nabiki went through.

"That is not all, you were told that you would be spared of the treatment of your sisters wouldn't you? Or rather that you and your sisters would not be part of the chaos that would follow. He even signed a contract with you didn't he? And when all was said and done, including verbal promises that would protect you and your sisters, he asked his men to violate you in every conceivable way short of taking your virginity," a voice from outside the bathroom said.

Nabiki's eyes flashed in anger as she spat out, "Yeah, everything you said was true. Shall I add that I was forced to suck and drink the cocks of so many men that I lost count? Oh what fine dirt you have on me now! Go ahead! I'm at your mercy. The Ice-Queen of Nerima has fallen. I can never blackmail anyone again because now the dirt on me supercedes everyone else. Go ahead! Take me and be done with it! I may as well find what is the big deal about sex since those bastards did everything but go all the way with me!"

"Onee-chan, it isn't about your abuse isn't it?" Akane said quietly.

The middle Tendo glared at Akane.

"Your life is filled with business and contracts. Its been that way ever since mother died. Nothing is gained without being lost. Profit and Loss. Revenue and expenses. Financial Control. Emotional Control. Control of destiny," Akane said.

"What the hell are you talking about? And what the hell do you know about how I feel."

"Because what you feel now, Ranma and I have been feeling for years since he came to our dojo."

Nabiki's eyes were actually lost and she became puzzled.

"You tried to strike a deal with Happosai to protect yourself and all of us. You met Herb instead and tried to bribe him with probably most of mum's investment accounts and bonds which amounted to at least 5 million yen. If you had met Happosai, you probably took most of Kasumi's underwear with you. I know how much Happosai craves Kasumi's underwear. And Herb agreed with you. Just when you feel you were safe and secure, the rock crumbled and you found yourself deep in the darkest pit that you've ever been since Mother died."

"You're not suffering because of the loss of your dignity Nabiki. You're angry at your loss of control."

"How do Ranma and I understand this? Do you know how many times we've tried to get along and even to confess our love in the two years we've been together? DOZENS OF TIMES NABIKI! And every single damn time something would come up that disrupts our moment or cause Ranma to put his foot in his mouth again. Even when the wedding came, YOU had to bring in every other fiancée in Nerima to crash it. We've always loved each other but everything and everyone in this world kept getting in the way. I'll tell you now that I've had my nights just crying myself to sleep because I was this close to telling Ranma my feelings."

Ranma then spoke, "I may not have cried myself to sleep but once I ran several laps around Nerima to get rid of my frustration. My mind would always make up some excuse that I did it because of the fiancée dilemma but I realise now it was because, like Akane, we were so close to making our love real. It took two years of those disasters before we finally got our quiet time and by then, we were both worn out. We couldn't continue our relationship as it was, filled with chaos and disorder that would make any relationship difficult let alone marriage. Having your life disrupted and not being able to do anything about it: that is why you are here before me, angry at life and everyone who could have prevented this but didn't. I needed to leave so that both of us can properly think for ourselves without the constant interference."

"Oh great, now the dumb jock is spouting philosophy. So just how am I supposed to be **_healed_**, great guru Ranma? Running away for two years and find myself bodyguards who couldn't protect him or his family? Not to mention studying under a teacher who could do everything but not protect his student's interests?" Nabiki said sarcastically.

"Don't talk about Master Wong like that. You know nothing about him," Ranma said without a hint of anger.

"Nee san that is why Ranma and the Captains are here. To train us to control our lives again. Not to control our lives for us. If they did protect us from anything and everything, then it would be they who would be controlling our lives, not us. And although they are Jedi, they are still human, not gods. They can't think of everything," Kasumi said.

Kasumi took a deep breath and said, "Please don't alienate yourself Nabiki. Mother wouldn't have wanted that."

"We will never know won't we? Mother has already left us!" Nabiki screamed.

"I just saw her Nabiki. If it weren't for her and Andy Wong, I wouldn't be here talking to you now," Kasumi said quietly.

Akane, Nabiki and Ranma were shocked. "What?"

Kasumi stood up from the ground. "Andy, Neji, I was wondering it you could be so kind as to leave us for awhile?"

"Very well Kasumi," both said.

"I will leave too," Ranma started but Kasumi said, "Stay Ranma and please check Nabiki while we talk. Should we go to my room?"

"No, let me do my examination here. I can clean her as I examine her as well."

"Don't you dare touch my body!" Nabiki shouted.

"Onee-chan, if I can stand him doing a full body examination on Kasumi naked, I'm sure you can as well. Please use your superior intelligence and remember that Ranma is NOT A PERVERT!" Akane said.

Nabiki looked as though the whole world had gone upside down, which actually happened to her today. Akane letting Ranma look at a naked girl's body? It was like Kasumi ruining a good dinner.

Ranma then suddenly realised something. "They know that I'm in Nerima now. If they aim to hurt anyone else that I care about…. MOTHER!" she shouted. She then keyed in her communicator. "Yoruichi, come in, come in."

"Yes Taichou?" Yoruichi's voice answered.

"I need an escort to be arranged immediately to protect my mother, Saotome Nodoka. You are to bring her to Nerima where she will be under our eyes and guard. I leave it to you to determine the guard detail. I'll prefer if you included Space Marines but ask Cypher first or 3rd Seat Officer Ardias of the Fallen Angels for permission. Please hurry Yoruichi. Kasumi isn't the only one who suffered today. We just rescued Nabiki and if I were them, I would take revenge against any other family member or friend."

"Acknowledged Taichou. What is the last address of hers?"

Ranma told her. "You will see your mother in 2 hours. Yoruichi out."

Ranma then laid down a few towels on the bathroom floor. He also took out his Captain's coat and made a pillow out of it. "Please lie down Nabiki. I'll be as gentle as I can but I'll have to disinfect some of your scars and it will hurt. Please be brave, as you have been today. I don't know if you realised this but in the end, you survived and are now in the loving care of your sisters. If you were Andy Wong, he would be praising God right now."

Nabiki was silent as the strain finally showed and she became very very weary. Ranma laid her on the towels and then took out the first aid kit that he had used earlier with Kasumi. He also took another metal box from stuffspace and opened it, to reveal dozens of vials of odd chemical liquids that would have made Kodachi green with envy. Kasumi sat beside Nabiki on her right while Ranma was on her left. Akane leant knelt beside Ranma prepared to help him in anyway.

To be continued.

Sorry guys. I promised that Nodoka would show up in this chapter but I found so many things to write in this chapter about nursing Nabiki's mind. Somehow, I regret making her go through a perverted hell that could only be conjured up by my pervert mind so in recompense, she's going to get a few chapers focused on her. Believe me, I never thought I would be writing about Nabiki when I started this fic since I didn't like her. Now I've woven her as part of the plot.

Anyway, flames and reviews are welcome. I'm prepared to be flamed to hell now. I just hope you all will forgive me, especially PPMKatie, who has already expressed concern concerning the stuff I read and see.


	15. Chapter 13: Healing of Tendo Nabiki

**Chapter 13: Healing of Tendo Nabiki**

In the backwoods of a little house located in remote Satsuma, a group of intelligence operatives made their way to kidnap a certain woman.

"Theta squad, destination in sight. Beta squad reports no residents. Target sighted in bedroom. Securing perimeter," the leader of 3 men in army fatigues heard from his communication device. They moved with in a manner which left almost no trace of their coming, which was a great feat since they came to the house from the forest. They were masked and armed with Glock 18 pistols, AK-47 rifles and each had a different hand weapon: a morning star, a whip and sword respectively.

Three men were already spread through the small yard, covering the small gate that was the only entrance. Three more scaled the short wall and positioned themselves near the door screen that led to the back yard. The lead group of 4 men climbed the nearby trees to hop on to the roof, not making a sound as they did it. Stealthily, they opened the window and sneaked inside.

They heard the sounds of a shower running and could make out someone singing off key. Extremely off key until it made the soldiers wince under their masks. Their leader signalled to two of his men to search the house while he and the other went to the bathroom. Just outside the bathroom they grinned when they saw the kimono in the washing basket. The leader quietly opened the bathroom door and saw behind a shower screen the silhouette of a woman showering. He motioned for his companion to get ready to capture her. Both slung their rifles behind their backs. The leader took out a hood while his companion held rope in his hands. They approached the shower noiselessly and were about to pounce when they saw the silhouette move and turn off the shower. The kidnappers nodded at each other, ready to strike the moment she opened the shower screen.

Then the woman bent down, picked up a gun from the floor and shot the man's outstretched arm which held the hood. The laser shot completely disconnected the man's arm and it took a moment for him to register the bloody stump before he screamed like hell had claimed him. His companion was shocked and tried to unholster his pistol but the screen opened to reveal Yoruichi gloriously naked. The man's eyes boggled, for Yoruichi was the finest specimen of a women that he had ever caught. This distraction was nearly fatal for his eyes were on Yoruichi's body and not on her hands, on which the Lightning Claws were still attached. Swiftly she struck, making a long gash from his elbow to his wrist, severing his arteries and subjecting him to an unending bleeding and pain. The soldier tried vainly to stop the bleeding but to no avail. Then he experienced a new degree of pain as his hair was gripped by Yoruichi's left hand while the other gripped his commander's hair and proceeded to drag them across downstairs. The men screamed in agony although it was the one with the bleeding arm who had a real danger of dying. But it wouldn't happen for another hour, long enough for questions to be asked and answered.

The leader managed to turn his attention away from the stump that used to have an arm attached to it when Yoruichi dragged him to the living room. There he saw the other two soldiers, badly wounded with bruises at the feet of the huge men in black armour. Their masks were grim looking and despite not seeing their eyes, the leader could feel their contempt through the armour.

"Please, help me…" the man screamed as he continued vainly to stop the bleeding.

Yoruichi raised an eyebrow. "Help you? And what exactly were you going to do when I asked for your help? No, I'm afraid the pain that you feel now is as yet, minor compared to what you're going to feel now. Unless of course you confess all of your operations in Japan. I want numbers, number of agents in Japan, number of groups and names of those who support your twisted alliance, and who else you are planning to kidnap for your sacrifices."

The leader's eyes widened when he heard the mention of sacrifices but immediately shut his mouth and somehow remembered who he was: an elite espionage agent. The other 3 similarly upon hearing the word sacrifice proceeded to stifle all their moans and became silent.

"Perhaps it is best that we start redeeming their souls before it is consumed by the fiery maelstrom of the warp," Brother Malachai said as he dropped his rifle and pulled out his chain sword, which resembled a combination between a sword and a chain saw.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ten minutes later, Yoruichi slipped into the bathroom again to take a real bath. For intelligence agents, they cracked easier than Yoruichi expected. Nearly severing their testicles resulted in turning them into singing canaries. A much simpler way after tearing of their fingernails, breaking their bones one at a time and even sawing of their legs and then reattaching them again via Yoruichi's healing power. Such was not the way of the Jedi Guard but the Space Marines ultimate allegiance was to their Emperor and Andy Wong compromised by laying strict rules to their interrogation techniques. Yoruichi had been naked the whole time and now in retrospect, regretted doing so as it probably strengthened their resolve to resist their interrogation techniques. Her body was drenched with blood which she now prepared to clean.

While she was showering, her communicator started beeping. She activated it while the shower was still running. "Taichou?" she asked.

"Report on status. Brother Mateel said there were assailants going to my mum's house."

"There were 10 men. All reasonably trained professionals. We captured all of them and proceeded with the rites of discovery as is the Dark Angels tradition. The 10 men are still alive and we await a shuttle to carry them to Destiny's Forge to be imprisoned."

"What did you learn from them?" Ranma asked.

"Not a great deal, enough to discern that they have a fleet of submarines somewhere in the Pacific Ocean from which they operate. I do know the location of their next target though. Apparently Kasumi isn't the only prized slave in Happosai's list. And I must agree, his next target is quite interesting. Interesting enough that Herb is personally going to abduct her this time."

"Excellent. Its time we settle the score between us. But why would he personally go to get her himself?" Ranma wondered.

"Actually, he aims to capture the woman's technology. You see, there are other aliens on this world. But we will speak more of this later Taichou. Right now, I really need a bath."

Silence reigned for awhile. "Make sure you pray with Andy Wong later. He'll not be happy with the torture of the Musk men."

"Yes Taichou.

_Half an hour ago_

In a little house in remote Satsuma, Saotome Nodoka finished polishing the family heirloom, a katana which represented the family's adherence to honour. Sadly it was sorely lacking in the current patriarch of the family and as a result, Nodoka had kicked him out of the house as soon as she discovered that Ranma left after the failed wedding. She had not been present at the initial meeting, leaving Kasumi to fill her up on what had happened.

She sighed as she sheathed the blade. Her first reaction was to kill Genma for not raising a son man enough to marry his fiancée but for the first time in her life, Kasumi told Nodoka off for not considering her son's feelings. It was always the concept of being manly that had alienated Ranma from Nodoka and she only realised this when the normally sweet and demure Kasumi scolded her. And as a result, she was left practically a widow with no husband to take care of her and a son who left the family. Her only consolation was Ranma's promise that he would return one day. That had been two years ago and the loneliness had become unbearable.

_Perhaps its time to see if Ranma has returned, _she thought to herself. She normally frequented the Tendo Dojo a few times a year when Ranma was still living there but since Ranma left, she had not been on good terms with Kasumi after the scolding she received. Nodoka made a decision here and then to return to Nerima.

As she donned her usual kimono, she studied herself critically. Having married Genma at the tender age of 18, she was 38 years old yet she kept her beauty well, looking only like her late twenties. Yet she spend the better part of her life in her home, hardly going out to socialise, only leaving the home in recent years when she heard a vague rumour that a martial artist named Saotome had come to Nerima. Her hair was reddish brown rather than the fiery red that was Ranma's woman half. Her skin was flawless and even now her face bore none of the wrinkles that characterised women approaching forty. And she was as tall as Genma as well. Many men had approached her before while Genma was away but Nodoka always had a habit of bringing the family katana with her and that promptly scared them off.

There was a knock on her door that shook her out of her musings. She sighed as she suspected yet another male caller intent on asking her out. Somehow Japan's middle aged male population seemed to have grown out of proportion with the females. No matter, all she needed to do was carry her katana to the door, which she did after she finished dressing in her kimono.

Instead of a plain looking middle aged man asking for a date, she found an exotically beautiful woman which had dark skin and golden eyes. She was flanked by two huge giants of men, who were clad in black armour and carried huge rifles as well as swords that dwarfed her katana. Being exposed to Nerima however had jaded the Saotome matriarch. So she merely asked, "How may I help you? Are you lost?"

_Wow, Ranma's woman half really does resemble his mother, _Yoruichi thought. "Actually, we've come to see you. We are here to escort you to Nerima. Your life is in grave danger and our captain, Saotome Ranma wishes to see to your safety as well as seek your presence.

"Oh My! Ranma is back? When? And where did he go? And…. wait a minute, did you just call Ranma your captain?" Nodoka was flustered with the news that Ranma had returned.

"Yes, he is my captain, and I his vice-lieutenant," Yoruichi answered.

Nodoka blinked at Yoruichi and promptly started crying out, "my son is so manly, having a beautiful girl as his _ahem _vice captain!" she said dreamily.

The two Space Marines and Yoruichi stared at each and shook their heads. "Madam, it is no longer safe for you to be alone. Come with us and we will travel to Nerima. Your life is in danger and we're under strict orders from our captain to be your bodyguards from now on."

"Oh don't worry, people are always trying to kill my son," she said dismissively.

"Do you want Happosai to storm your house and defile you now in revenge for Ranma beating him? Because in 1 hours time, that is exactly what will happen unless we leave now!" one of the Space Marines, a battle-brother known as Gabriel who was a good friend of Ranma bellowed.

The sheer seriousness of the Space Marine brought Nodoka back to reality. "Are you serious?"

Before Yoruichi could reply, the other Space Marine barked, "Hostiles approaching. Scout team 3 reports 10 of them, working through the woods to the backyard."

"Brother Gabriel and Brother Malachai come with me. We'll set up a fitting welcoming committee for them. The rest of you, see to Madam Nodoka's safety. It is the mother of a Jedi Captain that you are guarding," she said as she the gauntlets she was wearing suddenly sprouted 3 vicious claws. She disappeared right in front of Nodoka and the two Space Marines moved swiftly into the house while another 2 came out of what looked like an Armoured Personnel Carrier to Nodoka. "Please come with us Madam. Vice Captain Yoruichi will see to those scum."

Nodoka could only stare in disbelief as the two Space Marines gently nudged her towards what looked like an Armoured Personnel Carrier.

"Please step inside, milady," the Space Marine said while bowing courteously before Nodoka. Not used to having attention on her, she bowed back and stepped into the APC.

The Space Marines slipped inside the huge APC, which was actually a Land Raider stolen from the true Dark Angels armoury sometime ago. Otherwise known as the most heavily armoured vehicle in Cypher's universe and even served them well in the Star Wars universe. "Brother Mateel, on to Nerima. Sister Yoruichi, Brother Malachai and Brother Gabriel will join us soon.

"Is that wise? 3 against 10?" Nodoka asked.

The Space Marine snorted. "They will soon know the wrath of the Emperor."

_Present_

The Land Raider did not travel through the length of Japan. Such an action would have drawn everybody's attention. The Land Raider was instead picked up by a drop-ship which specialised in carrying armoured cavalry. The drop-ship while not ideal for covert operations, was still advanced enough to avoid detection from 20th century Earth primitive technology and carried the Land Raider to Nerima.

Inside the Land Raider, Nodoka shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Seating on either side of her as well as in front of her were the largest men that she had ever seen. Not even the tallest gaijin from American football seemed to match their height let alone their bulk. All were clad in black armour with a symbol of a gold skull with outstretched wings on their breastplates. On their right hand shoulder plates, was a symbol of a sword against angel wings.

She fidgeted uncomfortably in her seat. One of the Space Marines then broke the silence. "Would you like any refreshment milady? We have water and some confectionary. They were made by the Fourth Jedi Captain Saotome Ranma and I must say, it continues to confound my battle-brothers that how someone so powerful can do a woman's job."

At the mention of Ranma, Nodoka was brought back to reality. "Please, have you seen my son Ranma? How is he? Where has he been the last two years? Are you his friends?"

The Space Marine said, "I do not know the 4th Jedi Captain well but I have served as his comrade for 10 years. I say 10 years although in your time, it is two years since he left his home. Oh, excuse me, I am Brother Lysander of the 5th Jedi Legion, also of the Fallen Dark Angels," Lysander said while bowing to Nodoka.

Nodoka could only blink at the man's words. Jedi? Captain? Dark Angels? "OK, I do not understand a thing of what you just said but suffice to say, you have seen my son, is it true?" Nodoka asked.

"Indeed. Your son returned to Nerima 6 days ago and has spent time with his fiancée Tendo Akane. Things are amiss in Nerima and he fears your life is in danger. So he has requested us to escort you to Nerima."

"My son… my son has returned," Nodoka whispered, clutching the katana tightly.

"You will soon meet him Madam Saotome. Ah, I see that we're about to reach our destination. Please be brace yourself, the ride could be rough."

xxxxxxxxxx

While Kasumi's check up was just a check up, Nabiki's body needed medical attention that warranted Ranma's use of a full medical kit from his adopted universe with the Jedi. One of the Jedi Guard that dropped in had brought a full kit for Ranma to use. Poor Nabiki's muscles were cramped and swollen from being immobilised in one position for so long and also from the abused heaped upon her via whipping her bared flesh. Ranma could only wince as he examined the long scars caused by the whips, some of which had barbs on them, in particular on her buttocks and even on her breasts which fortunately none had hit her nipples. But they produced 2 centimetre wounds that now dotted her body. Grimly, he began documenting every bit of injury in his minds.

If anything was needed to prove that Nabiki was truly abused, it was in the rope marks. The attackers were clearly just torturing her for the fun of it: she had struggled so hard that the coarse rope had rubbed her body raw where she was bound, even more so due to the expertise of the roper which had made the bindings so hard that even if Nabiki had not struggled, her prolong exposure would have marked her body anyway. The fact that Nabiki had been blindfolded the entire made the reactions even more intense and painful as she could not even predict the next strike. It wasn't just her wrists and legs, the perverts had made a Japanese Shibari breast bondage on her body as well. Although her breasts were small, they had somehow bound them until both had turned black and blue. Her nipples were also swollen and red, having been pulled, pinched and even pierced.

"Well? Enjoying yourself? I suppose this covers all the yen I got from you when you were still freeloading," Nabiki said sharply as she felt Ranma's eyes all over her body.

Akane was about to answer back but Ranma held up her hand. She took out a big canister the size of a 5 litre flask and poured it into the bathtub, making sure that it was plugged first. Then he took a bag that turned out to have needles. Lost and lots of acupuncture needles. Before Nabiki knew what was happening, her entire body was pierced with hundreds of needles, even her head and face. It had felt like a hundred bites by fire ants for a second. She wanted to scream but found to her horror that she could not. All she could do was glare at Ranma.

"Please don't let yourself be angry. Most of these needles are merely to amplify your body's chi and then regulate them to the wounded areas where they must be focused into regenerating your flesh," Ranma said. "Some will also null your pain somewhat but I'm afraid to be fully effective, it will hurt. In this case, I ask for your forgiveness Nabiki," Ranma said.

"Kasumi, Akane, carefully lift Nabiki to a sitting position. Be careful, she has zero mobility now." The two Tendo sisters did so, careful not to disturb the needles already in place. Nabiki could only make guttural noises to protest and she felt fear over her loss of control again. As if reading her mind, Ranma said, "Nabiki-chan, please do not be afraid. We are your friends and family whether you trust us or not, and our only intention is to cure. Remember that we do now, we do it because we love you," Ranma said. She then proceeded to smear the ointment into all of her exposed flesh. The ointment smelled like burnt rubber and stung the eyes of the Tendo sisters but felt cooling and pleasant to Nabiki. When all the barb marks, whip marks and rope marks had been smeared, he put down the jar and kneeled in front of Nabiki.

"Forgive me Nabs," she said. And then using three fingers on her right hand, she struck at the centre of Nabiki's chest. Hard.

Nabiki screamed as she felt her entire body burn in fire. Kasumi and Akane looked extremely alarmed as her muffled scream came out loud from her throat. "Do not interfere, I told her that this will hurt," Ranma barked.

Ranma's attack had caused some sort of chain reaction with the needles, which all started to vibrate. Kasumi's chi senses saw that Ranma was pouring his powerful chi into Nabiki's body until it exceeded the limits of Nabiki's untrained body. Ranma's chi was blue and it now seemed to force its way into Nabiki's red aura, creating a mixture that was pinkish. But what was amazing was that her body was healing. The barb marks seemed to mend itself, the rope marks were disappearing and her blue and black skin was now shifting back to a healthy pink colour. All of her scars were mending themselves and inside her body, the burnt tissue in her breasts and vagina where electrodes had been attached also regenerated themselves.

Nabiki did not know all this though. All she knew was a sea of fire had covered her body. Her eyes rolled into her head but fortunately, the treatment lasted only two minutes before every scar on her body was healed. Then Ranma broke contact with her body and Nabiki dropped to the floor. Her two sisters cried and attempted to take out the needles but Ranma barked, "I will take them out. Don't touch her yet," she said.

She gently lifted Nabiki who had fainted and lay her in the bath tub, after which he turned on the water to fill the tub. The water mixed with the liquid Ranma poured in earlier and the water started sparkling. When she had submerged most of Nabiki's body except her head, he began to remove the needles one by one. She left the ones that controlled Nabiki's nerves last, by which time, Nabiki had awakened.

Ranma the knelt in front of the tub. "OK, now you can do whatever you want to me."

Nabiki stood up from the tub and slapped Ranma. Ranma let her body be moved when she was slapped and soon Nabiki was raining every blow she could on Ranma.

Akane and Kasumi let it go for awhile and then both stood and held on to her sister who had once again gone hysterical while Ranma knelt passively taking her blows. "Nee-san, its enough," Kasumi said gently while holding on to Nabiki.

"HOW DARE HE! HOW DARE HE HURT ME LIKE THAT AFTER ALL I WENT THROUGH! THAT SON OF A BITCH PUT ME THROUGH HELL!"

"I don't know how you felt but have your seen your body lately?" Akane asked.

Nabiki then suddenly noticed the absence of her scars. More importantly, she did not feel the internal injuries that had been plaguing her since her rescue. She touched her buttocks, which was now as smooth and bore none of the barb marks and cuts. She started feeling all over her body for any sign of her torture and found none.

"Don't worry Nabiki, I remembered every single detail of it. And someone way pay for it," Ranma said.

Nabiki sat down on the tub and promptly started crying. She sobbed and sobbed while the two Tendo sisters dried her with a towel. Ranma collected the needles and put them back into his First aid kit. "Nabiki, please continue to soak yourself in the tub. I believe Kasumi has something to say."

Nabiki looked at Kasumi with tearful eyes. "Did you really see Mother?"

Kasumi became silent as she felt the other three eyes in the bathroom on her.

"Nabiki, the Nerima College was bombed today. The faculty of engineering building was destroyed, just as Akane and Ranma were about to enter it. The explosion has caused at least 300 students to be killed as per the last news update. I was at home when it happened along with otou-san and Saotome san when it happened. We all rushed to the college but the fathers left me behind as I couldn't match their martial arts speed."

Ranma's eyes glinted as she heard this but said nothing.

"As I was walking through the market street, I suddenly became aware that there was not a single soul on the street. Everything was silent and even when I ran on, I eventually came back to the same place. Confused and afraid, I bumped into Pantyhose Taro who revealed to me that Happosai wanted me captured, and that the explosion was a diversion to attract the attention of the Amazons. He ordered his henchmen to capture me but I managed to get myself out of their grasp when they tried to seize me. It was then that Pantyhose Taro changed into his cursed form."

"He immobilised me with his tentacles, stripped me then proceeded to feel my body. When I tried to bite him, he choked me and forced me to suck his eel tail. I don't really know what happened next but according to Andy Wong, I became insane."

"Wait a minute? Andy Wong? Ranma's master? Is he the man I saw just now in the living room?" Nabiki asked.

"Yes Onechan. He is the one who rescued me while Taro was forcing me to… I believe the term is oral sex on his tail."

"When Taro forced his tail down my throat, I retreated myself into my mind and locked myself with memories of mother when she was still alive. I couldn't bear the thought of Taro so I withdrew from the world. I was with mother during all of her picnics and the happy times that we had when she was still alive. And I didn't want to leave her and was prepared to stay with Mother forever in the confines of my mind."

"And then Mother spoke back to me. Telling me to grow up. Telling me to look after my sisters and care for them. Most of all, telling me to be happy. This was not part of my fantasy and her clear voice brought me back to the present where Taro was violating me. Mother was watching me and encouraged me while Taro was doing it and she gave me the strength to fight back. I did, biting hard at the eel that was in my mouth. I bit the eel's head off and Taro rared with pain. The next thing I knew, the tentacles had released me and a flash of lightning blinded me. When I awoke, I was in Andy's arms, wrapped in his captain's cloak."

"I was so glad to see him but then he told me to look over behind me. And there she was, just like in the vision of my mind, standing there. It was our Mother sisters."

Akane and Nabiki gasped. "But she is dead. How could she have come back?"

Kasumi shook her head. "All I know is that she was there and Andy somehow got her to come. She was not a ghost or illusion because she held me in her arms and I could feel her soft embrace like all those years ago. And she spoke of how proud she was of you Akane. She is happy for you and for Ranma whom she approves very much and wishes you happiness with him."

Akane's eyes started tearing as she gazed at the ground. "Oka-san…"

Kasumi then looked at Nabiki. "We always thought that Akane needed the most help didn't we? In fact, we were the ones who needed help to carry on after mother's death. Ranma solved a big chunk of Akane's trouble but we were essentially still trapped in our little worlds, I in my neverending responsibility as homemaker while you were only engrossed in money. Don't deny it sister. I understand it and even now I love you," she quickly said before Nabiki could protest.

"Her last words was for us to be strong and continue to forge our own destinies. I believe it as a sign that we should not let Happosai dictate our lives and we should fight him for his transgressions. Not Ranma, not the Captains but we the three of us. And if possible, Otou-san as well although I really don't know what to do with him."

"But, how… what is this Andy Wong anyway? Did he resurrect mother? Where is she now?" Nabiki asked.

Kasumi replied, "She went back to heaven after giving me those words. It was then that the Jedi Captains arrived and Herb came to taunt us about you. That was when we realised that you had been kidnapped."

"But even if you knew I was kidnapped, how could you do anything if Herb was threatening me as a hostage over your heads?"

"Apparently, Jedi Captains don't negotiate with hostage takers. And they don't let the hostages be killed as well. Andy Wong smashed Herb's face and caused him to flee. Captain Neji followed Herb fly to the submarine where you had been captured."

"In the meanwhile, Cypher and Hitsugaya are out there somewhere to fight off the rest of the attackers in Nerima. The whole of Nerima was attacked today and there are many many martial artists whose dojos have been attacked and students killed as well. I have a feeling that Andy Wong knows why but he isn't telling us at the moment. Jaina is out helping the Amazons as well who were also attacked earlier today. In the meantime, after Neji set off to rescue you, Ranma, Akane, Andy and I returned to the dojo where Ranma performed a check-up on me. I'm sad to say I was more lucky than you and only suffered bruises from where Taro's tentacles had held me."

Nabiki was quiet as rage started to build in her. "That perverted SON OF BITCH!" she shouted and slammed her fist so hard into the floor that it bled.

Ranma groaned. "Oh great, right after I healed everything in your body. Well Nabs, your gonna have to heal on this normally," she said as she grabbed Nabiki's hand and started bandaging it.

Nabiki looked at Ranma and eventually her expression softened. "You were with Akane when the building in college exploded?"

Ranma nodded.

"Who do we know is dead?"

Ranma looked at Akane and bowed his head. "Daisuke and Hiroshi are dead. I found parts of them among the rubble earlier."

Akane put her hands to her mouth to stifle a cry. Kasumi likewise started to cry when she heard.

"I don't know anyone else in the college but at least Ukyo and the Amazons are safe. Not too sure about the Kunos though. I'm not supposed to care but I guess I wouldn't want to see them dead as well. Cypher and Hitsugaya will be returning soon along with Jaina and the Amazons. We can get a full assessment of the damage in Nerima and then plan our next step in stopping Happosai."

"Whatever you have planned, just make sure it involves a lot of pain for Happosai and Herb. Tell you what Saotome. Give me Herb locked in his woman's form when you have captured him and we'll call it even," Nabiki grinned wickedly as she ran through the things she would do to Herb in his woman's form."

"You will do nothing of the sort. Happosai and Herb will stand trial and be judged for their crimes. We will not simply torture them to death for vengeance. And my Lord and Master hates torture and prolonged deaths. He will not condemn anyone to a slow death. Or anyone else for that matter. Your sense for revenge is something we have to talk about later," Ranma said sharply.

There was a knock on the door then.

"What is it?" Ranma barked.

"Ranma?" the voice of a female sounded before the bathroom door opened.

Ranma froze as one of his nightmares come true: his mother finding him in a bathroom with three girls. One of which was naked in the bathtub.

Nodoka did the only appropriate thing in her mind. She dropped the katana, pulled out victory fans and started dancing and singing.

"My son is so manly, my son is so manly…."

Against the backdrop of violence, chaos and grief that enveloped Nerima, Andy Wong finally allowed himself to smile as he laid the last of his dishes on the dining table. _Well Mrs. Saotome, I've made Ranma as manly as I can make him. I just hope my definition fits yours as well._

To be continued.

OK, I know I'm repeating Nabiki's torture in more detail but I'm writing this purely on the fly with no plans. I hope it turned out OK, especially the last part with Nodoka's entrance.

I realise it was impractical to put in a Land Raider APC as it is too huge to travel around Japan unnoticed but I'm too lazy to change it. Use your own imaginations to figure how Nodoka exited the Land Raider in Nerima.

To all who have read my story until now, you have my utmost thanks and appreciation for reading my works. I pray that you will continue to do as well as reviewing my work.

One final note: How many are familiar with Onegai Sensei or Please Teacher anime? Please message me if most of you have, otherwise I'll have to amend this story regarding Herb's next target to keep within the Rama universe. Basically, the next target is a alien living as a teacher in Japan and married her student to keep the secret. And they fell in love. That's Onegai Sensei in a nutshell. Apart from demons, I want Herb and Happosai to have some alien technology as well to counter the Jedi. But if you are all against the concept of yet another cross over, I'll think of another way. So please tell me your opinions.


	16. Chapter 14: Reunion

**Author's rants**

Hope you are all enjoying the story so far. The encounter with Onegai Sensei will be put off a few chapters after this in order for me to have both good guys and bad guys to plan their next moves against each other.

So without further ado, I present to you:

**Chapter 14: Reunion**

Ranma sighed as yet another element of chaos entered his life again. Albeit she loved this element and would gladly suffer ten over times to endure it. She stood up and walked to his dancing mother. "Mum, I'm really happy to see you but would you stop doing that? Its very embarrassing and completely inappropriate for the occasion."

"Oh course my dear son. It wouldn't do for a mother to intrude on her son's manly duties," she said smilingly while putting away the victory fans. "Please continue with your activities with the Tendo sisters. The more the merrier, as the gaijin always say," she said as she skipped out of the bathroom.

Ranma sighed. "Nabiki, please rest in the bath for the next ten minutes, then you may dress yourself. The liquid I poured into the bathroom earlier will help restore the rest of the chi I used earlier to heal your body. Kasumi, Akane, make sure she doesn't get out of the bathroom for 10 minutes." She reached into his pocket and extracted a Data Card Reader, which resembled an I-Pod. She clicked on it until it loaded a book program then handed it to Nabiki. "You can read this with Akane and Nabiki. I wrote it in my spare time during the war."

The three Tendo sisters gazed at the title on the screen: **_Saotome School of Martial Arts Volume 1_**. "Wow, you're actually writing about our school? But I thought that was forbidden by the Grand master… never mind, I just remembered who our grandmaster is," Akane scowled as she thought of Happosai.

"Hey, most of my Division is trained in the Saotome Style now. Even Cypher's Space Marines have benefited from it. You haven't seen Cypher and his Fallen Angels fight unarmed yet. They're like tanks with the finesse of panthers."

"The first volume I've managed to lay out the basics of the Saotome Style so that a four year old can understand it. I'm going to teach it to the rest of you too so it'll be best if you can read some of it now. Remember, 10 minutes otherwise I'm going to get seriously mad," Ranma said sternly.

Akane sighed. "Thanks Ranma. I can't imagine you teaching your arts to others though. I'm really looking forward to it since I haven't had a real sensei since Dad stopped teaching. You're really changed for the better Ranma," she finished as she sat up and gave Ranma a hug, which he responded in kind.

A sigh was heard from the crack of the bathroom door. "My son is so manly…." Nodoka moaned.

"Of that I have no doubt Mrs. Saotome. But I'm afraid I must break you out of your insane fantasy into the reality of the tragedy that has befallen the Tendo sisters and Nerima," Andy Wong's stern voice said.

"But what is the matter? Why should my son not celebrate his manly duty?" Nodoka whined.

"Have you seen the news? Don't you have television at home?" Andy asked.

"No I don't, I don't watch that horrible contraption," Nodoka replied.

Andy raised an eyebrow and looked at Ranma who had just come out of the bathroom. The currently woman captain shrugged. "Don't look at me. All I know about my mother is that she wears kimonos, thinks I'm manly when I peep at girls and wants to kill me when I'm girly."

"Oh hush Ranma, we've already gone through that. You passed remember? Besides, frankly speaking I would only have killed your father, not you," she said amicably.

Ranma held up her hands. "Mother, before we do anything else, could you permit your son to do one thing?"

Nodoka stopped her daydreaming and focused on Ranma for a moment.

"Would you permit me to cry and hold you in my male form as I've always wanted to do?" Ranma whispered as tears started to come to his eyes.

Nodoka was shocked and for the first time, noticed just how much taller Ranma's woman form was. And how much older she was. She had been so taken aback at seeing Ranma with the Tendo sisters in the bathroom that she had missed his appearance entirely. "Son, what happened to you?"

Without further ado, Ranma changed back into his male form, strode forward and embraced his mother in a bear hug. He also started crying tears of happiness as he once more had the chance to see a bright light in his chaotic life. If Nodoka had been shocked at Ranma's woman half, she was even more shock at his male half. Although she couldn't see his face as his head was currently over her shoulder, she could see his hair in which there were a large number of grey hairs. Eventually, the fact that she hadn't seen her son in two years caught up with her and she also hugged Ranma fiercely. "My son, you have returned. I've missed you so," she cried.

"Tadaima, Oka san," he whispered.

Neji and Andy excused themselves into the living room. The 2nd Jedi Captain looked at Andy Wong whose face was now nostalgic. "Don't tell me after tens of thousands of years, you still remember your parents?"

Andy replied, "I'm blessed with memories of them which thankfully have not eroded. You know, the next best thing after being held in the bosom of your beloved wife is being held by your mother. Or failing that, your father. Parental love is most of the time, the starting point of our discovery of love. Without love, we are nothing."

Neji sighed. "I suppose being defeated by not one but two love-struck Jedi should be enough to convince me that what you're saying is true. For my part, I've never known the love that you feel. Love for a comrade and friend, that is what we all share with Ranma and each other but love as in falling in love? That's something alien to me."

Andy grinned. "In case you haven't noticed, Ranma HAD a large collection of fiancées, most of which are now on the way of being evicted from his marriage list. Maybe you can pick up one of them."

Neji snorted. "Please, we still have to get Cypher to see the Emperor remember? No way in hell am I going to go back to his universe with a wife and child hanging over my back."

The Jedi Lord laughed. "You're probably right. Or it could be an incentive to come back rather than go to a war with nothing to hold you back from a gruesome death."

"I take it your going with the second stance before going to see Cypher's Emperor?"

Andy fell silent. "Perhaps. I do not know. As cheesy as it sounds, love is blind and comes in unexpected ways. God's willing, I will know soon enough."

Xxxxxxxxxx

Eventually, the reunited mother and son broke the embrace and took a close look at one another. To Ranma, Nodoka had barely changed, still the same beautiful reddish brown hair and beautiful face that so resembled Ranma's woman half. In fact, Ranma's woman half was not the spitting image of her mother. More so as Ranma was now 31 years old and Nodoka was probably 34 or 35 years of age. But to Nodoka, like the Tendo sisters her heart cried out when she saw just how old Ranma had become. His eyes were still the same sky blue but it now had a terrible depth in them, whereas once upon a time, they were shallow and filled to the brim with arrogance. His face had several wrinkles and she could detect hints of scars that lined his neck and the right side of his face. More recently was what appeared to be claw marks of a woman's long fingernails on his face.

"Kami-sama, what happened to you son? And who did that to your face?," Nodoka whispered.

Ranma merely put his hand on his face and the wounds healed instantly. The scars were still there though. "A lot of things mom. I'll tell you about them one day, as I've promised to tell Kasumi and Akane but not now. Are you serious when you say you don't watch television at all?"

Nodoka was indignant. "Just because I don't watch the telly doesn't mean I'm cut off from the rest of the world. I just happen to like the newspaper better."

Ranma breathed a sigh of relief. So his mother wasn't such an air-head after all. He held his mother's hand and led her to the living room. "Mother, a lot of people died in Nerima died today. Somebody attacked Nerima and killed nearly 700 people died and Nabiki and Kasumi nearly ended up being raped.

Nodoka stopped dead in her tracks. "Dead? SEVEN HUNDRED! And... wait a minute, Kasumi, dear sweet Kasumi, was nearly raped?!" she shouted incredulously.

"Its true mom. And I believe that would have happened to you had I not sent some men to escort you to Nerima. Please mother, we're currently right smack in the middle of a small war here. And believe it or not, this time, it wasn't my fault!"

Nodoka was shocked beyond words. She just stood there clutching the katana tightly and staring at Ranma.

"Perhaps its best we look at the news now," Ranma said as he led his mother into the living room. Once there, he turned on the television and the Jedi observed how Nerima's chaos had affected Japan."

_"…. the Koizumi government has dispatched members of the Japanese Self Defence Force into Nerima and announced a terrorist alert to all of Japan. He has been criticised for requesting assistance from the American airbase of Okinawa but he rebuked opposition, saying that now is not the time to dwell on personal pride but to ask assistance when needed. Such a state of tragedy has shocked the population of Japan who until now, have never been threatened by disasters which are not natural in nature."_

The reporter went on to describe how most of the cities in Japan were now practically under martial law. But later, more shocking news about Ranma himself was stated.

_"…. residents in Nerima say that long time trouble-maker and martial artist Saotome Ranma recently returned to Nerima after disappearing for two years. He is regarded by local residents as a pest and philanderer and is know to possess no less than three fiancées, all of which he has stringed for two years. His disappearance seems to have been linked one of his fiancées forcing him to uphold his marriage vows only to have him have cold feet at the wedding…."_

"WHAT?!" Ranma shouted, his aura flared an ice-cold blue.

Andy looked sadly at Ranma. "I picked this up while you were healing Nabiki. Happosai and Herb moves fast. Actually, you're not the only one mentioned. He pointed at the television which were now showing the other four Jedi Captains except Andy Wong. They were now wanted for questioning by the police.

"Wait a minute, if they know who I am, why aren't they beating down our front door now?" Ranma wondered.

"The Jedi Guard are casting an illusion shroud at the moment. The police couldn't find the place even if they were directly in front of the house. It would not do for them to interrupt Kasumi's checkup or Nabiki's healing," Andy Wong stated.

"Just great, it's just like the Peace Brigade back in the Yuuzhan Vong war undermining our reputation again. Didn't think we have to go through that bloody mess again this time," Ranma groaned.

Nodoka continued to look at the TV. "Ranma my son, I know I shouldn't doubt you but I must ask anyway: did you have anything do with the deaths today?"

"No mother, I did not fight anyone today as suprising as it seems. I was in Nerima College trying to rescue the wounded in the blast!" Ranma said.

"… my dear boy, how could they say that you were responsible for this then?" Nodoka whispered.

Ranma shrugged. "Where have you been mum? Whenever something bad happens in Nerima, they always blame me. This time, I'm going to stand up to it though. I'm going to cleanse my name if it's the last thing I do. Akane doesn't deserve to be married to someone with who has a fugitive status."

"Well said Ranma. I must admit this was out of my calculations though. I never thought Happosai to be the devious type," Andy said.

Neji's communication tag bleeped. He touched it and said, "Captain Neji here, go."

"Captain, we intercepted a transmission from the Japanese Self Defence Force who have requested their own martial artists to come help figure out why they can't find the Tendo residence. If they enter, they will detect our Force technic and counter with their forces. My advice is to cook up a story soon and make sure you all are away from the Tendo Dojo when they come," a Jedi Guard named Janson reported.

"Acknowledged. Track their martial artists but make sure you give us ten minutes before they arrive. Do not alert them of your presence," Neji commanded. He then looked at everyone else. "We've got company coming. I propose we leave this house and go somewhere else. We must have a council to discuss today's happening."

"We currently have a transport silently hovering above the Tendo Dojo. We can use it to get away from Nerima and assemble somewhere else. Cypher, Jaina and Hitsugaya can gather the Amazons and rendezvous with us."

"But that will only delay the inevitable. How are the police going to react when they find the Tendo dojo empty?" Ranma asked.

"Leave that to me," said the ice-queen of Nerima as she entered the room. Nabiki looked none worse for the wear and now sported shorts and a white tank top. Ranma immediately stood up and was angry.

"I told you to rest for ten minutes."

"It has been ten minutes," she replied non-chalantly. "Anyway, consider this my thanks for tonight's rescue. You all go and have your war council or whatever it is you do when you fight your enemies. I'll stay back and drive off the reporters and police. And don't worry, I've dealt with them plenty of times. How do you think Ranma's exploits rarely escapes Nerima? Or for that matter, not once did Ranma ever end up in jail or being sued for property destruction?" she asked.

Ranma frowned. "OK, but why did you do that? I mean, protect my reputation? Not that it was any worth protecting and was already blotched thanks to my pops."

"Let's just say Kuno and the Amazons also had to pay a hefty sum to keep me from exposing their activities as well. And most of the time, it was their fault. You were just their unwitting pawn of destruction. So don't fret Ranma baby, you don't owe me anything for this one," she smirked.

The pig-tailed martial artists scratched his head. "Are you sure you are the same girl I just treated in the bathroom? The one who did this to me?" he pointed at the fingernail marks on his face.

Her face expression soften. "I'm only going to say this once. I was wrong, woefully wrong about you Saotome Ranma. You are indeed the best person I have ever known and I see now how stupid I was to blame you or for that matter, to have pushed you off to Akane from the beginning. "

She then turned to Neji and did something most uncharacteristic of her. She knelt in front of Neji and bowed. "Thank you so much for rescuing me. If there was only a way that I could repay you not only for saving me but also for me to redresses my insult to you and the Jedi Guard. I see now how wrong I was and wish to ask that you give me a chance to repay you," she said, bowing low all the while.

Most of the inhabitants of the room including Kasumi and Akane thought the world had gone upside-down again. Nabiki apologising? Yet another miracle as far as Akane was concerned.

Neji as usual, looked unperturbed. "Just remember to put your heart in the training that is to come. And remember above all, the importance of honour in your actions. It may look as though Ranma suffered from honour but ultimately, it has made him a better person today."

Nabiki lifted her head and there were tears in her eyes. "I will. Thank you again Neji. Now I think its best you leave. You can pick me up later to see you all," she said.

"You won't be left alone. I will post some of the Jedi Guard in my Division to be your guard. They will also possess teleportation capabilities. And they will be able to remain undetected in your house when the police come," Neji said.

Andy Wong then stood up. "Well, I guess it means we'll have to pack all the wonderful dinner I was cooking just now."

Nabiki was surprised. "You cooked dinner? You, a Jedi Lord?"

Andy shrugged. "Let's just say my second wife couldn't cook to save her life. I can still taste her horrible cooking even after ten thousand years."

Kasumi went into the kitchen and the breath was taken from her lungs. There was a feast fit for twenty. Dishes bearing chicken curry, Malay beef rendang, sweet and sour pork, steamed catfish, baked potatoes stuffed with bits of bacon, fried spinach leaves with garlic, boiled broccoli with melted cheese on them and garden salad were arrayed in the kitchen. Ranma nearly turned into a drooling idiot when he saw the dishes. "Oh man, its been such a long time since we tasted our Lord's cooking," he groaned.

"Enough talk and start packing. We're going to hold our meeting at _Destiny's Forge. _Nabiki will stay here with 3 Jedi Guards to protect her. We'll pick up Cypher, Jaina, Hitsugaya as well as anyone else whose involved in this mess along the way."

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

"No, we have not seen that girl and we do not know who she is. Just because she is a woman martial artists doesn't mean she's a Chinese Amazon. Besides, she's a gaijin, a westerner. We don't accept such people in our tribes," Elder Cologne patiently explained to the detective in front of her.

"Very well then. Please keep me informed if you know the whereabouts of Saotome Ranma and the other miscreants. I don't need to remind you the seriousness of consorting with criminals," the detective said.

"Please come again, during lunch hour preferably," she said as she ushered out the detective. She waited until he had driven off before deftly removing all the electronic bugs in the restaurant. She was about to remove one last one before Jaina popped out of nowhere and snatched the bug, disabling it with a chi-blast.

"For an old ghoul, your pretty hand with technology," said the red haired Jedi Captain.

"And you fight with a grace and power that would put me to shame had I been in my prime. Was it your Jedi Lord that taught this way?" Cologne asked.

Jaina nodded. "For the last 10 years yes. For most of my childhood, my uncle, Luke Skywalker had been trying to revive the Jedi through trial and error. My Lord Andy Wong is a complete Jedi leader who knows nearly everything there is to know about the Force, which you might call chi, so my training was more complete."

Cologne smiled as she poured the Jedi Captain some tea. Both were weary from fighting off the Musk mercenaries. Jaina accounted for a good 40 of them while Cologne, Mousse and Shampoo dealt with another 60. Jaina's had fought with her lightsaber, a sword of pure energy that sliced everything in its path. But Cologne knew that the weapon was as dangerous to the user itself and noted how graceful Jaina danced as she slew the Musk. The Musk were tough and moreover wielded fire arms. Fortunately, Mousse was also quite adept at fire arms and managed to produce an American M-16 rifle, complete with a Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher, after he ran out of knives, shurikens, claws, hooks and even his duck shapped potties. He supported Jaina and the female Amazons as they charged through a hail of AK-47 bullets, Jaina using her lightsaber to vaporise the bullets to get Cologne and Shampoo close enough to charge through.

Even after their fighting was finished, they looked at the still live television to find the Jedi Captains faces on the wanted list of Nerima's police department. The Amazons had quickly hidden Jaina in their underground before greeting the police who came in shortly. The detective even had a search warrant to search the residence but fortunately, Cologne knew how to make a secret basement secret. As such, even the police dogs couldn't detect the basement presence let alone Jaina. That didn't stop them from putting electronic bugs which Cologne promptly removed.

"Soon we must have a council to deal with Happosai and Herb. I hope Nabiki is not hurt too badly, or the next time we meet Herb, none of us will show mercy," Jaina said.

Cologne said sadly, "Somehow I doubt she has not been injured, both physically and psychologically. Every Chinese Amazon knows that when the Musk attacks, it is better to die at their hands rather than be hauled away to be sex slaves for the rest of their lives. They are the most sadistic and debauched men I have ever known, and seem to delight in humiliating woman. The worst fate is when they've broken a woman into loving yet hating her humiliation at the same time, resigning her fate to a lifetime of endless torture, pleasure and humiliation. Even if Nabiki is kidnapped for only a short time, I fear the worst for her already."

Jaina sipped her tea. "Just pray that our Jedi Lord doesn't loose his temper. Believe me, none of us wants to see Andy Wong go berserk. Only the combined power of the rest of us 5 captains have the power to defeat Andy Wong should he ever turn to the Dark Side of Chaos. Because if there's one crime he hates more than anything else, it is rape and sexual abuse."

Just then, Jaina's communicator bleeped, and she flicked her finger on it. "Captain Solo here," she said.

"Jaina," Ranma's voice sounded. "We're converging on your location now in the Land Raider Carrier. Invite the Amazons to come. We're going to have a council at _Destiny's Forge_."

"How is Nabiki? Is she alright?"

Ranma was silent for awhile. "She's still a virgin. But they tortured a body enough that I had to use the **_Needle Chi Healing Technique_." **

The 3rd Jedi Captain was shocked. That was Ranma's best healing technique but also the most painful. If Nabiki sustained that much injuries…"

"Did Neji kill Herb?" she asked.

"No, it wasn't his place to kill Herb. If anyone is going to get revenge, it'll be the Tendo sisters. And we're going to make sure they can exact justice upon him."

**To be continued**

Sorry for the late update guys. I'm stressed enough that I'm seriously thinking of quitting my job. Pray it will happen, then I'll have more time to write for you guys. To Happosai Sama and PPM Katie, thanks for your great reviews.

As for what's to come hmmmmmm, more Nodoka interactions to come, and also the Tendos will soon see Ranma's lifestyle as a Jedi Captain.

Ooooooohh, one thing I'll definitely be doing next chapter. Genma ranting about Ranma being useless will happen again.

Except that there's at least 400 men, women and aliens in Ranma's 4th Division. Plus another 3,000 plus Jedi Guard in _Destiny's Forge._

Yoruichi's lightning claws will sing again. BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!


	17. Chapter 15: The Pure of Heart

**Author's rants**

Do not fret everyone. The good guys and bad guys will be balanced. And sad to say, Akane has not gone through her suffering yet. Nor will it be certain that the Tendo sisters will safe again.

Also, any other character aside from the 6 Jedi Captains and the Nerima Wrecking Crew will be strictly side characters that won't have a significant impact on the story. Even Yoruichi, Ranma's vice-captain who will participate the most in this story will mostly act as support for Ranma. The rest of the vice captains introduced below are just there because all the captains except Andy Wong needs a vice-captain. So don't fret, there's no need to remember the rest of the vice captains or Jedi Guard for that matter except for Yoruichi. I intend to keep the battle to the Nerima residents and Jedi Captains.

**Chapter 15: The Pure of Heart**

The inside of the Land Raider was extremely spacious, a good 10 by 10 meters at least. Enough to fit 6 Jedi Captains, the two Tendo sisters, Kuonji Ukyo, the three Amazons, Nodoka, Genma, Soun, 5 Space Marines, 10 Musk prisoners and Hibiki Ryoga. By chance, they found the Lost Boy after they picked up Jaina and the Amazons. It looked like Ryoga had demolished a large area but had not succeeded in killing any of his attackers, merely driving them off when they realised to their horror that the bullets were bouncing off the Lost Boy and none of their weapons could harm him. Soun had been found crying non-stop at the site of the explosion. Apparently he arrived just as Ranma and Akane had run off to Kasumi's aid and had been staying there crying for a good 6 hours until the Land Raider Carrier located him via Hitsugaya's telepathic scanning of the Nerima Ward for Akane's blood relatives.

Currently, Ranma filled up Ryoga on what had happened that day.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY? KASUMI AND NABIKI WERE RAPED!" the Lost Boy shouted, unable to believe what he just heard. It was inconceivable that anyone would hurt sweet Kasumi.

This did not help stop a currently limitless fountain of tears from Soun. "WAH, MY DAUGHTERS HAVE BEEN DEFILED! THEIR LIVES ARE RUINED! I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO MARRY THEM OFF!" he wailed.

"Tendo Soun, get a hold of yourself!" Ranma snapped. "What's done is done and now we must look towards our present and future."

"But what can we do? How can we survive this catastrophe?" he continued to wail.

Ranma couldn't say he was surprised at his stupid answer. "Gee I don't know," he said pretending to look pensive. "How about PLANNING TO KICK HAPPOSAI'S ASS TO KINGDOM COME!" the 4th Jedi Captain bellowed at Soun. This only served to agitate the human water fountain who only cried louder at the thought of fighting the old grand master of Anything Goes Martial Arts,

"Boy, you are mad if you think you can defeat the old master! He is beyond your skill and until now, he has been the one who was holding back. You a stupid fool, unworthy of being my son for even contemplating such a foolish action!" Genma added his two cents.

Almost everyone in the Transport, including the 5 Space Marines became very quiet. Then Nodoka put down her foot. "15 years you spent making him a man among man. 15 long years in which you put him through torturous training and totally neglected his education. 15 years which you separated him from me. And another two years lost because of your bloody deal with Tendo Soun to force Ranma and Akane into marriage, which I never knew until two years ago. And now, when he has returned to regain control of his life and marriage, you call him STUPID!" and with a _shinging _sound, the katana was unsheathed and its naked blade was pressed against Genma's neck. The fat man almost went as pale as his panda form.

"Nnnnnneee…. No Chan," he stammered.

"Don't you No-Chan me!" she said angrily. "You're unworthy of being my husband, Ranma's father and also the future grandfather of our grandchildren. I wish I had realised then, the only thing you cared about was yourself."

To Nodoka's shock, Genma smiled. "If I'm to be blamed because I wanted to train Ranma in the best way there is, then remember you let Ranma go with me as well, just because he was signed the contract with a palm print. You're as stupid as I am woman for letting Ranma go in the first place. And like it or not, I did make Ranma into the best martial artist. The kind that looks after himself!"

It was a bolt from the blue. Nodoka was shocked and her face went ashen as she realised that she had been stupid too. The katana slipped from her fingers but before it dropped to the floor, Hitsugaya grabbed it.

"BOY, HOW DARE YOU TOUCH THE SACRED SAOTOME BLADE!" he shouted at Hitsugaya.

Hitsugaya looked at everyone then sheathed the katana and wrapped it in the silk cloth again. Ranma helped Nodoka back to her seat and then set next to her, comforting Nodoka who was now sobbing and apologising to Ranma.

The sound system of the Land Raider crackled to life. "My Lords, we will be docking at Destiny's Forge. The Vice Captains request for orders," Yoruichi asked from the pilot seat of the carrier."

Andy, who was the highest ranking one there answered, "There's no need for a full reception committee. However, have the Vice Captains assembled along with a detention crew. We have ten more prisoners to be imprisoned. What is the status of the abomination known as Pantyhose Taro's interrogations?"

"The Vice-Captain and Chaplain Ardias has extracted valuable information. They are prepared to report to my Lord at any time. The abomination is alive and is currently undergoing treatment," Yoruichi said.

"Very well. Ask them to assemble in the War Room and prepare the room to be used as a dining hall. Assign some Jedi Guards to help us carry the food as well," Andy Wong said.

"Acknowledged. Docking procedures complete in 5 minutes. Sit tight everyone."

xxxxxxxxxxx

One thing Kasumi and Akane wished they could see was outer space but unfortunately, the Land Raider had no windows, and the driver's cockpit was locked. So they did not see the carrier exit Earth's atmosphere and zoom to the dark side of the moon. There, waiting against the blackness of night, was a dagger shape ship with a length of roughly 1.6 kilometres. It was an Imperial Star Destroyer, one of the most powerful ships in the galaxy. It was painted completely black and only the lights of the windows betrayed its presence. This was _Destiny's Forge_, the first capital ship used by the Jedi Guard to build a small space fleet for the transport of their army. This one was also modified with special weapons and greater manoeuvrability. The Carrier entered into the underside of the ship where the dock was and entered into a cavernous hangar. The hangar was huge and not very full, most of the star fighters and bombers had been shifted to the Galactic Alliance fleet. The carrier gently places the Land Raider on the floor of the hangar before moving to another docking place. Inside, they felt a slight bump and then Yoruichi was opening the Land Raider's doors, which opened from the front of the Land Raider.

Andy Wong stood up along with the Jedi Captains. He turned to the Nerima Wrecking Crew. "In the name of the Jedi Guard, servants of the Galactic Alliance and defenders of peace and justice, we welcome you to _Destiny's Forge_.

The Nerima residents exited the Land Raider and looked around in wonder at the cavernous hangar. The thing that stuck out the most though, were six huge humanoid robots which stood at approximately 20 meters each. They looked like the mobile suits from the Gundam Anime that Akane had watched before. Each of their shoulder plates she noted was numbered from one to six, leading Akane to deduce that it belonged to the Captains. There were also a few lines of what appeared to be space fighter planes. Dozens of humans and aliens were scurrying about doing their activities to maintain the small fleet of fighters and the six mobile suits.

Awaiting their arrival were a group of 10 men and (Akane couldn't believe her eyes) aliens who were wearing the same brown robes and body armour of those Jedi that had appeared in the house earlier. There also another four beings that were dressed completely different from the other.

One was a human with fiery red hair tied in a pony tail. He was the same height as Ranma and had tattoos on his face and where his eyebrows should have been. At his hip hung a katana-like sword and a lightsaber as well. Instead of the brown robes covering a white body armour inside, he wore a black kimono similar to what Neji wore in his Captain's outfit.

Another was a two meter tall being that looked like an extremely hairy wolf. It wore no clothes but was covered in thick shaggy hair from top to bottom. It wore some sort of leather sash across its body and it had a lightsaber on it.

The next was an extremely well endowned woman whose breasts just seemed to be bursting through the seams of her white Jedi robes. She was beautiful and had long golden hair that reached to her waist. Like her counterparts, she wore her lightsaber at her hip belt which again sported a sword as well. She was dressed in a blouse that appeared a few sizes too small for her and sported some sort of jeans which were black with silver threading.

Next to super-breast girl was what could only be another Space Marine. His armour was different from the ones Akane saw in the transport. This one's helmet was terrifying, in the shape of what looked like a mutated human skull. His armour was also more ornate and his shoulder and knee pads were both plated with a gold coloured metal. He had a Bolt Pistol similar to Cypher's at his hip and also what looked like a huge club at his other hip. Like the Space Marines, he was tall and only the wolf like being was taller than him.

Yoruichi exited the transport and leaped at the side of the Space Marine and all of them stood at attention.

"CAPTAINS ON THE DECK!" the super-breast girl shouted and all the Jedi Guard stood at strict attention.

"At ease," Andy Wong said. "Detention team, bring the prisoners to the brig. They're already undergone interrogation so there is no need to go through **_extraction protocol_**. Vice Captains, if you could be so kind, help bring the food containers to War Room 1."

The Jedi Guards nodded and went it first. Soon they were marching the 10 Musk prisoners to another place, who could only stare in awe at the technology and power they were watching.

"Why in the world are we, the great vice-captains, being reduced to food handlers now? Is there no limit to our humiliation?" the red haired man groaned.

Neji sighed. "That my friends, is Abarai Renji, vice captain of the Second Division and laughing stock of the Jedi Guard."

"Taichou, it appears its time to make sure you understand the meaning of RETIREMENT!" Renji shouted as he activated his lightsaber and fell into a battle stance.

The wolf being who was next to him promptly lifted a huge paw and brought it down on Renji's head, smacking him into the ground unconscious. It then proceeded to make a series of what seemed like dog yelps at the Jedi Captains who promptly started laughing.

"Uh Ranma, did that… thing just speak?" Akane asked Ranma.

Ranma took a moment to compose himself. "He is Lowbacca, a Wookie from the planet Kasshyyk. Lowbacca is Jaina's vice captain. He merely said if only Renji could draw his sword as fast as his mouth."

Cologne looked at the 2nd Jedi Captain. "Are you sure someone like him is your vice-captain? He seems so undisciplined, arrogant and stupid."

Renji instantly woke up. "WHO YOU CALLING STUPID YOU OLD GHOUL!"

Andy Wong took a deep breath.

"ABARAI RENJI, GET INTO THE TRANSPORT AND TAKE MY FOOD NOW! IF I SEE ONE CRUMB OF BREAD MISSING, YOU'RE NOT GOING TO EAT ANYTHNG BUT AIR FOR THE REST OF THE MONTH!" the Jedi Lord had amplified his voice until the entire hangar was filled with his booming voice. And poor Renji was right in front of it and promptly fainted due to the sonic boom that just passed through him.

Yoruichi sighed then picked up Renji and slung him over his shoulder. "Very good Taichous. The conference room is ready and your dinner will be served shortly. I trust water is good enough for all of you?"

"Sake for me and my good friend Soun here," Genma piped out.

"Pops, alcohol is prohibited until the end of a war. We can't drink on this ship until we've dealt with Happosai," Ranma said.

"Oh the pain, to have a worthless and infilial son who won't even fetch his father his rightful cup of sake," Genma moaned and cried crocodile tears.

Suddenly, the entire hangar went quiet and strangely enough, Renji woke up again in time to hear the last bit.

"Have you all heard me? My son is infilial and dishonourable!" Gema wailed, hoping to force Ranma into a guilt trip or at least, make him embarrassed enough so that he will give Genma what he wants to shut him up.

He suddenly began to quiver in fear as dozens of cold stares and intentions to kill were directed at him.

Andy Wong sighed. "Let us pray," he said.

Every being in the hangar except the Nerima residents immediately bowed their heads down in silence. It was only then did Kasumi realised for the first time the nature of Andy Wong's honour and morality.

_"Andy Wong is a Christian?_" she thought incredulously.

After five minutes, everyone lifted their heads and Andy Wong called for attention. "Any who attempt to disregard the Jedi Code to satiate their bloodlust and revenge will be judged accordingly. If any of you attempt to **disembowel, gut, remove the limbs, perform lobotomy, burn at a stake, electrocute him in a tank of bacta, flog, flay, gouge out the eyes or otherwise put Saotome Genma, the father of 4th Jedi Captain Saotome Ranma, through excruciating pain, know that in the end, know that I will render you the same judgement for disregarding your oath,**" the Jedi Lord proclaimed.

Genma gulped as he continued to feel the cold stares on him. He would continue to feel those cold stares for the rest of their stay on _Destiny's Forge_, as word spread of what he said about Ranma in the hangar.

Seeing Genma's shaking in fear, Soun was also terrified but he was also too terrified to cry as well and appeared to have gone catatonic with fear. Nodoka, who couldn't sense chi or intentions to kill couldn't make sense of what was going on. "Ummmm, Ranma my son, what wrong with your father?" she asked.

Ranma shrugged. "Let's just say everybody on this ship has a motive for killing him now, considering most of them wouldn't be here today if it were not for me."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The conference room was surprisingly ordinary and lacked any high-tech equipment, just a simple large round table in the middle upon which tables and plates had been arranged. The Vice-Captains took the dishes to the conference room first and had set out the table before Andy Wong led them into the room. Now there was a feast fit for a king laid on the table and not only Ranma but Renji, Ryoga and even the stoic Hitsugaya began to look longingly at the food.

"Please be seated everyone."

The Jedi Captains arranged themselves to be on either side of their Jedi Lord, Neji and Ranma sitting on Andy's right while Hitsugaya, Jaina and Cypher seated themselves. At Ranma's right sat the Akane, Kasumi, Nodoka, Genma, Soun, the three Amazons, Ryoga and Ukyo who ended up sitting next to Cypher. Genma nearly went after the food the moment he was seated but was again, frozen with a **_Death Glare_** from Neji, which he had powered down nearly 95 to avoid killing Genma outright.

The door opened just as everyone was seated to reveal Nabiki dressed in the same tank top covered by a leather jacket and blue jeans. "Don't start the meal without me. Talking gives me an appetite and I had to cook some pretty fancy words to get the police out of the Tendo Dojo," she said as she seated herself between Kasumi and Akane who had made space for her.

"How did you get here?" Kasumi asked when Nabiki was seated.

Nabiki answered, "Same teleportation spell except they used some equipment that looked like electric poles to surround the casters and myself."

Andy nodded. "The teleportation spell if used individually has a short range, definitely not the hundreds of miles between our ship and planet Earth. Now before we start, please allow me to lead everyone in prayer."

_"Lord we thank you for the food that is put down in front of us today. Know that it is by your grace that we are here today and that we owe our lives, our strengths, our fortunes and misfortunes to you Lord, knowing that everything that we do is part of your plan. We undertake this food so that we can continue our journey of faith to know you Lord, and that the others on this table will soon come to know your grace and your love. We take this food, not out of greed but to meet our bodily needs. In Jesus most precious we pray, Amen."_

Most of the Nerima residents were shocked at the invocation of Jesus Christ by Andy Wong. This supremely powerful being, who by the accounts of the Jedi Captains had lived for tens of thousands of years, predating the 2,000 years of planet Earth's Jesus Christ, just prayed to Him?

Andy Wong looked at their gaping mouths and smiled. "It's a little hard to digest but let's just say God exists everywhere on every alien world and in every dimension." He looked at the food. "It appears that the food has gone cold. Jaina, if you would do the honours?"

Jaina nodded and reached out her hand at the dishes. The dishes promptly became hot and she tentatively took a piece of beef rendang and ate it. "Perfect as ever my lord," she said smiling.

Without further ado, Ranma and Hitsugaya cried, "ITADAKIMASU!" and dug into the food. Just as he was about to put the first piece of fish into his mouth, he felt the death glare of Andy Wong and Nodoka focused on him. Sheepishly he took it away from his mouth and put it on Akane's plate. "Sorry Akane, but once you taste it, you'll understand why I'm so desperate to eat it," he said.

Akane sighed and gave him a light smack on the back of his head. "Baka, always thinking of your stomach," she said as she put the fish into her mouth. Her expression changed to pure delight as she savoured the catfish that had been steamed and seasoned with soy sauce. Then she took dug into the food with gusto.

Dinner was quiet and nobody talked much as the food tasted so good that even Soun and Genma managed to break out of their fear shells and enjoy the food. Moreover, the events of the day were still fresh in everyone's minds and most of them dreaded the discussion that would follow. The Vice-Captains stood at the sides, refilling their glasses with water when needed. During the dinner, the Space Marine Vice-Captain passed what looked like an I-Pod to Andy Wong who frowned upon reading the contents before returning to his dinner.

At last dinner was finished and the Vice Captains cleared the table of the plates. Cologne then stood up and said, "300 years have I lives and have dined in the courts of the Emperors of the Ching Dynasty whom I can say, have the greatest cuisine in the world. Yet such simple dishes that you cook could easily match the greatest of the cooks of the Ching Emperors. Never have I tasted such good yet simple food except in the halls of the Tendo residence, served by Kasumi," she looked at Kasumi who blushed at the mention of her cooking.

"Please, Cologne-san, I am unworthy of being mentioned in the same breath as Lord Andy Wong's cooking, you must be exaggerating."

"On the contrary Kasumi. One of the reasons that I love Andy Wong's food is because it reminds of you and home," Ranma said. "Don't argue with me, just because I eat like Pop is going to steal it from me," and with this he threw a glare at Genma who promptly shrunk back in fear again, "doesn't mean I don't know how to appreciate different types of food and grade it accordingly. You and Andy Wong have the gift of making a simple dish into a delightful dish and every time I ate at Andy Wong's table, I was reminded of home and the promise I made to Akane," he said while glancing meaningfully at Akane.

"Ranma," she whispered as she put her hands on Ranma's hand.

This made Nodoka go dreamy eyed again as thoughts of dozens of grand children started dancing in front of her.

"Ahem, well , thank you for your compliment Cologne, though if I were you I wouldn't put my cooking on the same breath as Kasumi's. But now I'm afraid is time to get down to business," Andy Wong said.

At that moment, the newly cleared table suddenly folded itself in two and was pulled into the floor which had opened a crack allowing the table to slide through the slit and disappear. Moments later, the wall opposite the door opened to reveal a large screen that looked like a television.

Andy Wong stood up and walked to the screen which promptly showed a map of China and Japan. "First of all, questions regarding Ranma's dealing with the Jedi and our past activities are irrelevant to the current discussion. Suffice to say we are Ranma's friends and it is our honour that dictates that we help Ranma go back to his life just as he sacrificed a great deal of his life in service of the Jedi. His story with the Jedi is his own and it is up to him to decide when to tell it. Is that understood?"

Nods were made from the Nerima residents.

"Very well. As you all know, Ranma returned to Japan twelve days ago. At the same time, the being known as Happosai, the grand master of Anything Goes Martial Art came up with a scheme so fiendish and dire, that his evil aura spilled out to the whole of Japan and was felt by possibly every martial artist in Japan. We Jedi Captains also felt that presence of evil though at the time, we did not know who generate it."

"I decided that I would track down that evil while the rest of the Jedi Captains travelled to Nerima. I followed the source of the evil and eventually managed to track down Happosai. I masked my presence and for the next 10 days, I waited and watched as he unfolded his plans."

Andy paused for a moment. "This emergence of evil from Happosai coincides with the fact that he has fully restored his powers after long years of imprisonment by the hands I believe, of Saotome Genma and Tendo Soun. All the lingerie thefts you are all familiar of him doing, only betrayed a hint of his perversity and now he has decided to fully utilise all of his perverted knowledge to create his own kingdom or country, where his word is law and his every sadistic pleasure fulfilled. To this end he seeked out the most like minded allies: the sworn enemies of the Chinese Amazon tribes, the Musk. There is no need to explain Elder Cologne. I know enough about them by now: how they threw powerful animals into the Spring of Drowned Girls for the purposes of breeding with them to get powerful offspring. And their prince Herb I hear, is the descendant of a dragon which gives him some partially demonic abilities as well."

"He organised a conference in Musk territory to which he invited the worst riff raff in the Asian region as well as the most violent and sadistic elements of the Yakuza society, meaning the youngsters, not the elders of the Yakuza organisation. From there he laid his plan: to create a safe haven for slavery right in the middle of Amazon territory, which borders Tibet and Sichuan. The Amazon territory is so secluded that the Beijing government has not bothered to conquer it but I believe a treaty had been formed to make it such that the Chinese Amazons admit to being part of China and recognises the sovereignty of the People's Republic of China. Am I not correct Elder?"

Cologne nodded. "Yes, it is similar to what was adopted to Hong Kong, One Country, Two systems. Except that we are the third unknown system and all we need to do is help train their military forces. That is the only tithe we pay, otherwise the Beijing Government leaves us alone."

"Indeed. But is it not true that the Amazon territory is guarded by more than just mountains and forests?"

The old ghoul looked reluctant to tell. "I suppose you are going to tell us anyway so I'll admit it. Yes, the magic of Jusenkyo's cursed springs exists that forms a barrier around the Jusenkyo valley. The deaths of the hundreds of beings drowned in the thousand cursed springs created an aura of magic that surrounds the Jusenkyo valley. And we Elders utilise that energy in the worst of times to repel invaders. Even if Beijing launches a nuclear missile at us, we would still survive."

"This is one of the main reasons why the Musk could never successfully attack you in the past. But that has changed now that Happosai has chosen to ally with the Musk, to utilise powers as great as the magic of Jusenkyo," Andy said.

"The forces of Chaos and their demonic servants," Cologne snarled.

"I see that you are familiar with Chaos. May I ask which Chaos demon you have faced in the past?"

"We were once invaded by a group of horned beings led by a great winged demon who wielded a huge battle axe when I was still a child. They were summoned by a cult of dark wizards from Europe that attempted to drive us out. 4 out of the 7 Elders of the Chinese Amazons died to stop those demons even after we attacked them with the magic of Jusenkyo Valley," Cologne said.

"The minions of Khorne the blood god. Typical, all you need to summon his servants is a massive slaughter and sacrifice of blood."

Kasumi shivered as she heard about Chaos. "Please Mr. Wong, what are these Chaos forces? Are they Satan's helpers?" she said softly.

Andy looked at Kasumi. "It is hard to explain but although I call them gods or demons, they have little to do with the divine. They are merely manifestations of the galaxy's most negative emotions given form. Khorne is borne of hatred, anger and the desire to kill. Yet himself is not omnipotent or invincible and has been beaten before, albeit by others of his kind. He is one of the four Chaos gods that existed in Cypher's universe and apparently exists here as well."

"Nobody can summon a chaos god though. Most of the time, mortals will try to summon his demonic servants to serve their wills. These summonings normally end up badly for them as they must sacrifice a part of themselves and become damned as play things for Khorne when they died. The best way to harness Chaos power however, is to BECOME a demon, or a daemon which is a mortal that has transcended into demonhood. And that is what Happosai aims to do except it is not Khorne that he worships but another more sinister one: Slaneesh the dark prince of chaos, borne of lust, excess, pleasure, perfection and hedonism."

"This Khorne you mention we have many accounts in our history. Now are you saying there is another one, this Slaneesh?" Cologne asked.

"Yes, along with another two: Tzeentch the Architech of Fate and Nurgle the god of despair and disease. Do not burden yourselves with these though, no use worrying about them when we still have to deal with two."

"In any case, Happosai has great knowledge of not only Khorne but also Slaneesh. Although he worships Slaneesh, the demons that are most suited to be used against the Amazons are the bloodthirsty demons of Khorne. This is why he departed to the Musk the knowledge of Khorne ritual summoning. And it was because of this that your Amazon outpost was destroyed. They summoned only one Bloodletter, a lesser demon of Khorne and it managed to penetrate the Jusenko barrier and slaughter the warriors of the outpost. The remaining Amazons were rounded up as slaves and back to Musk territory. I was on my way back to Japan after learning their plans but they attacked sooner than I anticipated so I turned back and found the village razed. I defeated the Bloodletter and managed to intercept the slaves and set them free."

"So you are the one responsible for the survivors returning? In the name of the Amazons, I thank you," the Amazon Elder hopped on her walking stick and bowed her head."

Andy Wong shook his head. "Do not thank me yet, because in a way, I let all this happen by not slaughtering Happosai, the Musk and the rest of those scum. It was not my fight and I've made Ranma sufficiently strong enough to fight them. That does not mean the rest of the Jedi Captains will abandon the fight, but we are not here to win your battles for you. Only in the most dire of situation, when all hope is lost will we step in. But first you must prove yourselves that you can handle your own problems."

"Now we come to the attack of the Nerima district. I say that Happosai intends to be elevated to the favor of Slaneesh. Slaneesh demands the most excess of pleasure manifestation and the defiling of the purest hearts to satiate its lust. While Happosai may have wanted Akane and Nabiki as his personal toys, you Kasumi, are instrumental to his elevation. You are blessed with a good heart that has been tempered by hardship via your mother's death and molded by the sense of self-sacrifice that differentiates you from most of today's materialistic girls. In short, you are one of the most virtuous girls on this planet Kasumi," Andy said quietly. Kasumi blushed as all eyes were on her, as if realizing for the first time, how much of a calming effect she always had even after a huge crisis had happened.

"Initially, your virtue protected you from Happosai. Happosai couldn't bear to touch you, who had never had evil thoughts and was as pure in heart as a human could be. Moreover, Ranma was there acting as a counter to Happosai. But as he recovered his full power, he realised how valuable you were to him not just as a sexual toy. If he could accumulate at least 5 pure hearted women like you, his elevation would be assured and he would arguably become the most powerful being on this planet."

"He wanted to kidnap you all quietly but word reached him that Ranma had returned to Japan. He also had a hint of the other Jedi Captains and devised a plan to kidnap you from their protection. This is why he ordered a massive terrorist operation which killed most of the martial artists in Nerima to distract the Jedi Captains and Ranma. Then he sent his flunky Pantyhose Taro to kidnap you. Nabiki he had already captured when she, without informing the Captains, attempted to meet with Happosai to get out of the coming conflict that she sensed was coming."

Nabiki bowed her head low as the shame of her actions weighed heavily on her.

"The last bit is a deduction on my part though. I did not realise that he knew about Ranma's return until I read the report on Pantyhose Taro's interrogation which was compiled by Cypher's Vice-Captain and Chaplain Ardias. I'm only glad that I decided to leave for Nerima right after the attack on the Amazon village."

Andy Wong looked sadly at Kasumi. "Kasumi, your life is now bound with the fate of this world. Though there are other evils as great as Happosai, as of now he is the greatest threat in your life, and he will stop at nothing until he has acquired you for his ritual. I said earlier that he needs five maidens of pure heart to defile and elevate himself to become a daemon. But if he can't have the quantity, he can have the quality by turning you into an insane lust crazed beast that only craves pleasure and torture. You may think you are weak from going insane from Pantyhose Taro's molesting, which didn't even extend to rape. But the fact that you retreated into your mind to shut out the pain rather than except the pleasure and pain speaks of your heart already: that you reject sin and evil and would rather retreat rather than accept it. This is the quality that Happosai wants to break and if he does, he will be elevated by Slaneesh and you will be his ultimate slave and servant."

Kasumi bowed her head as the full weight on the situation settled on her. She couldn't believe that now she was the centre of the mess. And that if she failed, she would suffer a horrible fate far worse than anything Ranma had encountered until now. "Oh God, it's my fault isn't it that so many people died in Nerima today?" she asked quietly.

"Tendo Kasumi, you are guiltless of today's deaths. It was all the fault of a demented individual who only thinks of his own pleasures and greed. You are a victim of his plots. But now you are blessed with not only Ranma returning to your family but the rest of us Jedi Captains who have sworn to help Ranma rebuild his life. This we are willing to put our lives to ensure Ranma's happiness and your family's as well," the Jedi Lord said sternly.

"This is our offer. We will train you and your sisters to have the power to not only defend yourselves but to defeat Happosai and Herb. We will train you to be as strong as Ranma. But the journey will be difficult and it will be painful to endure. Ranma has already gone through 15 years of hell to be as powerful as he is. You all have to become stronger in a shorter period. For Happosai will strike again soon and I intend to send you all to counter his next operation."

Kasumi then stood up and bowed to Andy Wong. "Very well Lord Wong, I will undertake that training. I don't intend to spend the rest of my life cowering in fear of Happosai. I want to be free of his menace and be in control of my own destiny. Please, teach us how," she finished. Nabiki and Akane also stood up and bowed to Andy.

"Know this Tendo sisters. With great power comes great responsibility. The powers we will teach you to wield are terrible when misused. We will also teach you the Jedi Code. The issue is not how much martial arts and magic we will teach you but how you will use it. Tell me Kasumi, what do you want to do about Happosai?" Andy asked.

Kasumi looked pensive. "I don't know, I just want him to stop badgering our lives."

"Do you want to see him dead?"

Kasumi looked uneasy. "I suppose... no, I don't want him to be killed. I don't want anybody else to be killed not even Happosai. He must have been great once before he became the monster that he is now. If he was good once, I believe he can be good again. Unless you tell me he has been evil since the day he was born, I refuse to condone in murdering him once we've defeated him. Everybody deserves a second chance, at least that's what I believe."

Everyone looked shocked at Kasumi's response. Kasumi not wanting to kill the architect of her suffering? "_Is Kasumi really as dumb as her namesake?_" thought some of the Nerima residents.

Andy Wong looked at unperturbed by Kasumi's answer. Then he stood up and walked to be in front of Kasumi. And then he bowed deeply. Kasumi became flustered as he saw the powerful man bow to her. "Please Andy, why do you keep giving respect to an unworthy woman such as I?"

"Your self-esteem needs to be worked upon my dear Kasumi. You have further astounded me and further confirmed Happosai's reason for wanting you. I no longer fear of teaching you our powers now, for I know that your heart is pure enough to resist temptation and evil. And for that you deserve my utmost respect." Andy Wong took a deep breath. "Do you then accept the training that we will bestow upon you? Do you swear to uphold the Jedi Code, never to break them even if there is no other way? Do you swear to use the knowledge we bestow upon you only to serve others, never yourself?

Kasumi looked into Andy Wong's eyes. For a moment, both were transported back in time when Andy Wong was sitting on a bench crying in the park and Kasumi was only a little girl. His black eyes still remained the same then even though centuries had passed since he last saw Kasumi. The same honest ones that despite the long passage of time, still remained human. As for Kasumi, her brown eyes were still beautiful and conveyed gentleness yet possessed a fiery sprit behind it.

"Yes," she whispered.

To be continued.

Whew, one of my longest chapters yet. Essentially a recap chapter once I thought back on it, to summarise what's been happening till now. Hope its OK with you all and that you're not too annoyed with the delaying of the Onegai sensei crossover.

One other thing you might find odd till now is that in past chapters, I have implied that Andy Wong is a Christian. Well, I myself just became one in January 2006 and I modeled Andy Wong as one. Don't dwell on this too much though.

Take care and goodnight to all of you. I hope you will all review and point out my mistakes as my story is getting larger and I'll possibly make some mistakes along the way. Please point them out when I do. Thanks everyone.


	18. Side Story 2: revelations of the past

**Author's notes**

Thank you all for reading to now. I'm just thankful for that. I hope you'll forgive me for breaking from the story for awhile to let you get a glimpse of what Ranma's been doing in the Star Wars universe. For some who haven't read the manga, you probably haven't been exposed to Ranma's greatest skills yet which will carry over to the current period. You will also see how Ranma fares in an actual war along with the other Jedi Captains.

Note on concepts of the Force (Star Wars universe), Chi (Ranma universe) and Warp and psykers (Warhammer 40,000 universe). I haven't established a clear distinction between these three source of magical powers but for the moment, I'll use them interchangeable as they are all connected to each other in my universe. So bear with me. There will come a time when I'll clean up all my chapters and standardise inconsistencies if any. But I'll only know if you all continue to review.

**Side Story 2: Revelations of the Past**

Deep in Musk territory, a smaller dark council was convened. In Prince Herb's Palace, a small room had been made available. This time it consisted solely of Happosai, Herb and his two minions Mint and Lime. The Prince of the Musk managed to repair his face and it looked brand new, returning him to his original handsome looks. His frown made it anything but handsome though.

"So Happosai, not only did your plan to get the main ingredient for your power did not succeed, you also failed to capture a single Amazon woman. Instead, I lost more than 200 men doing your dirty work, and got punched in the face. _**Ranma always fights alone**,_ you say. Well, say that to the five individuals accompanying him. They're power is beyond anything we've ever seen, and that includes Ranma! I've sensed his aura and it has increased not twice, not five but a hundredfold since last we met."

"The Amazon outpost is destroyed thanks to a single Bloodletter. Think of what would happen once we've summoned a hundred of them," though Happosai was talking to him, he was pouring over a number of scrolls in front of him.

"Demon summoning is not the answer! And now the Amazons are not our primary concern! I know very well the price we have to pay for summoning them and I will not have them destroy a world which I plan to rule!" Herb snapped. "I'm concerned as to knowing exactly what those other 5 individuals are. For the first time, we're the ones in the dark! We do not know a thing about Ranma now nor do know about any of his friends."

Happosai quietly handed a scroll painting to Herb. "Is this the creature that you saw?"

Herb looked at an ancient Chinese drawing of a dragon that looked like the one Neji had summoned the other day. It was very accurately drawn right down to the metallic sheen of its skin. He read the old Chinese text which had nearly faded away until he could only read, **"…..flames.……. purify …… blessed ally ……. gift ….. heavens…"**

"This tells us nothing. So we know this creature exists. Even if we know about this creature, we have no idea of the master."

Happosai tossed him another scroll. Herb opened it and this time, he saw a crude picture of Neji flying beside the dragon. Neji was distinctive because the picture showed him wearing the same robes as he wore when he rescued Nabiki, right down to the Chinese character of Number 2 sewn on the back of the white coat.

"OK, don't keep in suspense. What are we looking at?" Herb crossed his arms.

Happosai was still reading something else, which looked like an ancient book, not a scroll. "Not as much as you like I'm afraid. What I do know is that your powers and blood can match that dragon which is called Kagutsuchi."

Herb's eyebrows began to twitch. "Like I said…" he growled.

Happosai then spouted, "The earliest scrolls I have about both that man and his dragon date back a thousand years during the Song Dynasty. Stories of it are not particularly happy though. I have not been able to construct a full legend from the scrolls I have but from what I surmised, it was given as a gift from heaven to that man in the scroll, who promptly misused it. As to how he misused it, texts only say the destruction of a hundred cities. There are no tales of how it or the man was defeated. Fortunately, I have managed to obtain some information regarding Ranma's other friends."

Happosai then took out the Nanban mirror and placed it in the middle of the table.

"I thought Ranma broke it sometime ago," Herb remarked as he assessed the beautiful mirror.

"Hey, I'm not just good at fucking girls and stealing their lingerie. Took me two years but now I'm glad I repaired it just in time when Ranma came back. As you know, the Nanban mirror carries with it the power to see the past as well as send someone into the past. The second power is now lost to us but fortunately, we can try to see some of the things that has happened to Ranma," the old grand master said. "Now step back as I try to delve into Ranma's past."

Happosai took the mirror and handed it to Mint and instructed him to hold it in front of Herb and Happosai. He then touched the mirror and proceeded to chant in some archaic language that Herb couldn't understand. The mirror eventually glowed and the looking glass show a great swirling black fog. Happosai's concentration increased along with his chanting as the fog began to become clearer and clearer. Sweat beaded down his forehead as his chanting also became louder. The mirror glowed brighter and brighter until Lime and Mint had to shield their eyes. Herb was unperturbed however and focused on the mirror. At last, Happosai cried in Japanese, "**REVEAL TO US WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW! TELL US OF SAOTOME RANMA!"**

With that, Happosai jumped back from the mirror just as the mirror stopped glowing and the swirling fog cleared to reveal a great battle, between an army of energy sword wielding warriors, with another race of monstrosities who looked like they had been bred to be horribly mutated reptiles. Everything they used seemed to be organic in nature and most wielded serpent like staffs which could change from being a staff, to a club or whip at a moment's notice. The two watched, fascinated by the blood and gore and the sheer size of the battle. They watched the battle, where although the sword wielding warriors were definitely outnumbered, they fought relentlessly and refused to give ground to the other army. Many of the sword wielders appeared to be human. They were fighting in a world like Earth, on the edge of a vast plain that was amidst a heavily wooded mountain.

"It must be another world. I have long heard that there are other worlds in the heavens other than ours. But why is the mirror showing this alien battle?" Herb asked.

"Hush, I think I see Ranma. Lets just see how well my former student fights against those monstrosities," Happosai said, referring to the other army of reptilians. Herb looked closely at the mirror and indeed, the two saw Ranma in the midst of the battle. But instead of fighting, to their shock they saw the cocky martial artist weave in between the fighting warriors and heal the fallen warriors, whether using medicine or what appeared to be magical techniques. Ranma was wearing the white coat with the number 4 on it and accompanying him was an extremely beautiful woman who performed her own healing techniques as well as aid Ranma in performing surgery in the midst of the battle. In other areas of the battle, they also saw like minded groups of what they surmised to be medical soldiers weaving into the thick of the battle, healing as they go.

All through the battle, Ranma did not throw a single punch. Most of the time he and the healers charged into the battle to grab fallen brethren and retreat back behind the front lines, where there were camps and fortifications. Even when he was selected by the reptilian warriors for battle, it was the beautiful woman who fought back, wielding gauntlets which sprouted claws that seemed to crackle with electricity and fought back with a ferocity that contrasted dramatically with her calm demeanor as she assisted Ranma in healing wounds. Both thought the world had gone upside down: Ranma being defended by a woman and for that matter, not fighting?

They saw the battle eventually joined by another group of sword wielders. But this one was different as the leaders of the squads were strangely armored men who did not use lightsabers but swords that resembled chainsaws. And if the current group of sword wielders seemed deadly enough to Happosai and Herb, this one seemed even more ferocious, throwing themselves into the battle with wild abandon and fought like berserkers. Herb then recognized one of those armoured soldiers wearing a white coat which bore the number 5 on its back. That one was using the same type of pistol that was aimed at him earlier by one of Ranma's friends. The pistol seemed to shoot explosive bullets as every time the shot ran true, the target always exploded. When any of the reptilians managed to get close enough to fight the great captain, those pistols would ignite and form the same energy swords wielded by the rest of their armies and he would do battle. His strength was immense as was his speed and agility which rivalled Ranma's though his martial arts were more focused on strength, very much like Ryoga's while Ranma's was based on speed. So great was his size and ferocity that eventually the reptilians were forced to fall back and the energy sword wielders pushed them back.

"I cannot believe this, Ranma not fighting? If anything, he seems to be a doctor on the field," Herb remarked. Happosai didn't say anything, continuing to observe the battle where he eventually identified another white coat which appeared to be the captain of the first group that initially fought. It was the same one that Herb had faced, with the white eyes and the number 2 sewn on his coat. But Happosai noted that the white dragon was nowhere to be seen.

"This battle is not informative. So far, nobody is using magic or chi techniques. We only know that Ranma's turned into a pussy healing doctor and that his friends are far more skilled in the art of killing than he ever was," Happosai said disappointingly.

"Hang on, what do we have here?" In the battle field, the retreating reptilians were now regrouping at a mountain. The sword-wielders were giving chase but did so warily, knowing they were in a mountainous area. Then all of a sudden, they were pounded with artillery. But what was surprising was that even from the mirror, Happosai and Herb knew it was not technology that fired the artillery. It was sorcery and many of the sword-wielders suddenly were struck with fear and held their heads screaming. Even Ranma, the armoured soldier captain and the white eyed captain was affected. But the three managed to organize their troops into falling back. The reptilians parted their ranks to give way to what were presumably their champions.

There was a great reptilian which looked like a Medusa from Greek legends of old. Her hair was filled with serpent like appendages, hundreds of them that were all at least a meter long, creating an odd looking aura of swirling tentacles around her. She was tall, nearly 3 meters and was clad in scale armour or perhaps it was its twisted skin. She had no legs but operating from the waist below she had a spider like body from which seven legs protruded. Each leg was like a spider's except that it ended in a birdlike talon. Her hands were normal enough except the left had fingernails that were nearly half a meter long each while the other held on of the serpent staffs used by the reptilians. Even Happosai and Herb, both used to horrors of Chaos, were repulsed by the reptilian champion. Surrounding her were dozens of reptilian warriors that seemed to be better armoured with a strange crab like armour.

_**Flashback 3 yeas ago**_

Cypher and Ranma looked in horror at the Yuuzhan Vong shaper that had emerged, with what appeared to be a specially hand picked warriors from the warrior caste. But what was worse was that these Yuuzhan Vong were forcibly infused with the Force. And the power of the Dark Side at that. Their sudden emergence had caused a psychic scream that was driving many of the more Force Sensitive Jedi Guard mad.

"All divisions, initiate tactical withdrawal! Devastator Squads, lay covering fire and retreat behind the river! All units withdraw! 4th Division, get the wounded out of here!" Ranma shouted not only to all in earshot but also in the communication device that connected all the division sub-commanders. From the behind the enemy lines, every soldier that possessed heavy weaponry or automatic weapons designed to lay covering fire rushed forward and established retreat points to cover the retreating Jedi from the advancing Yuuzhan Vong.

Hyuuga Neji had been nearest the front lines and heard the command. Around him, his 2nd Division lay nearly broken, for it had been directly hit by the Force Blast that had been generated by the Yuuzhan Vong shaper. Only he could look at the shaper with a fascination that betrayed his former Sith Lord origins. "So they finally figured out how to infuse the Force in their empty shells," he thought out aloud. And then he smiled. It meant that the fields had now been levelled and the Jedi could use the Force against them now.

"Taichou!" Renji screamed, clutching his sword Zabimaru with his right hand. His left hand had been torn off by one of the Yuuzhan Vong warriors but still he fought oblivious of the pain. "A tactical withdrawal has been ordered! Captain Ranma and Captain Cypher wants to pull back our forces back to the river!"

Neji looked at Renji. "Retreat? We can finally use our powers and they say retreat? Fools, now is the time for us to destroy them! The kiddy gloves are off Renji, its time they know the true power of the Force."

Renji's eyes narrowed. "Too many of our Division have been killed or wounded. We don't have the numbers to attack them now. We must wait for reinforcements from Hitsugaya Taichou, Jaina Solo Taichou and Jedi Lord Andy Wong to aid us! Captain, we must fall back!"

"Fine then fool, fall back with the rest of the cowards. I will hold those Yuuzhan Vong myself," and with that, Neji switched off his lightsaber and took out his katana, the Gerbera Straight. The katana gleamed blue in the battle and Neji dashed to face the Yuuzhan Vong.

"TAICHOU!" Renji screamed before he saw that another Force Blast was heading towards him from the sky.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

As the Jedi Guard retreated, only one stayed behind to face the Yuuzhan Vong. Neji was clad in light power armour beneath his robes and was wearing a helm that depicted a horrible demon-like mask. The Yuuzhan Vong champions as Neji designated them, made a sound that was most likely laughter although it sounded like the cackling of a hundred crows to Neji's ears.

The shaper then said, in Basic (this is what the Star Wars universe call English), "So you are one of the great Jedi Captains? I must admit that your Force presence is so small compared to one of your reputation."

"Enough talking, and show me what you've got," Neji said as he held out Gerbera Straight which in its current shape, resembled a simple katana that glowed blue.

The shaper became serious and her tentacles hair slithered like enraged snakes. She built up the Dark Side energy within her and vommitted out its contents at him, the result being the equivalent of a Force Blast which was essentially, artillery made out of Force energy.

"Drink the blood of your enemies, GERBERA STRAIGHT!" Neji shouted.

The katana became larger and thicker, until the sharp edge became jagged and intricate runes inscribed themselves into the blade. The sword now permanently glowed blue amid its silver covering. Upon its transformation, Neji lifted the blade over his head and swung an overhead blow. From the swing, an energy crescent discharged from the blade and intersected with the Force Blast in mid air, nullifying it. The Yuuzhan Vong warriors charged through and fought Neji with precision and skill that was beyond the Yuuzhan Vong warriors they had faced to date.

Neji was the 2nd Jedi Captain however and stood next to Andy Wong as the eldest of the Jedi Guard, with Hitsugaya Toshirou being only a few centuries younger. His combat skills, both in sword and lightsaber, was during an age when a single Jedi could subjugate a city. He danced with the Yuuzhan Vong warriors, his skill making up for the fact that he was alone. He noted that the warriors seemed to be infused with the Force and had at least learnt how to listen to the Force as they deflected his attacks far better than regular Yuuzhan Vong warriors. Their armour was tough, but not invincible.

With all his might he pierced a warrior with Gerbera Straight. The warrior screamed in pain as all of his infused Force powers was absorbed by the blade. But not only his Force powers, his chi energy was also forcibly sucked out into the blade, leaving him with a shrivelled husk of a corpse. He pulled out the blade and struck each Yuuzhan Vong warrior with increasing ease. At first he looked for weaknesses in their armour but eventually, whatever the sword struck it went through like knife through butter.

"Leave him!" the shaper cried to the remaining warriors. The Yuuzhan Vong warriors retreated behind the shaper leaving Neji to face off against the shaper. The 2nd Jedi Captain eyes now glowed white and so was his battle aura, which blended with the blue energy that radiated from Gerbera Straight. He spread his legs with his left foot facing the shaper and lifted his sword in front of him, aiming at the shaper.

Without warning, the hair tentacles whipped out against him, a thousand at a time. The 2nd Jedi Captain was shocked at the immense number of tentacles and proceeded to deflect the tentacles. But now a second strain was placed upon him because Gerbera Straight couldn't suck the Force energy out of the tentacles: in fact it was the other way round. The tentacles were trying to absorb Gerbera Straight instead and the katana could not do the same for some reason. Neji had to concentrate on maintaining Gerbera's power whereas before Gerbera just simply took what it touched.

As if it wasn't enough, the shaper lifted its long fingernails and proceeded to shoot with unerring accuracy at Neji. Moreover the nails just kept regrowing and shooting until it reached a speed where it was firing 5 nails per second. And at every shot, Neji had to dodge them, along with the tentacles.

With a roar, of rage he gave up on deflecting the tentacles and twirled his body like a top, making a mini-tornado with him at the eye of the storm. His radiated his Force powers which mixed with the tornado's wind and created an immense psychic shield that protected him from the numerous attacks. The sheer speed and power of the spin was enough to start cutting the tentacles as they continued their attack. But after awhile, shaper withdrew the tentacles and vomited out the force blast at the tornado. The great fireball of Dark Side energy smashed into Neji's tornado and carried enough power to penetrate the shield and hit Neji directly. The force blast melted part of Neji's armour and threw him away from the shaper. Neji bit his tongue as he felt honest to goodness pain in his body. He managed to land on his feet but it was all he could do to maintain standing as his legs felt like noodles and could hardly remain straight. He had to lean on Gerbera Straight to keep from falling.

And then the hair tentacles struck again. Neji desperately tried to lift Gerbera Straight but knew he was too badly injured to move let alone deflect the tentacles.

"KACHU TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!"

Neji watched in wonder as the pig-tailed martial artists used his fists to punch away the tentacles. Ranma was using his traditional "Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire" technique, a training he had received that allowed him to deliver 500 full strength punches in the space of one minute. The fool had learnt first hand how detrimental it could be if he used the technique barehanded against an armoured opponent and nearly walked away from his first battle with the Yuuzhan Vong's crab armour with his hands crippled. Now he wore power gloves which were a minor variation of that worn by Cypher's Space Marines. They were gloves that only covered his fists and part of his wrists but it generated a small matter disrupting field when it intersected with metal and flesh, and so lessened the pain to Ranma who had to further develop the strength of his arms and hands to continue using the technique. Now he was deflecting the monstrosity with his fists whereas Neji had to use his sword.

Cypher appeared beside Neji, picked him up carried him a few miles back where they eventually crossed a river that housed Jedi Guard fortifications. After laying him on a stretcher which had been prepared by Yoruichi before hand, Cypher shouted, "What the hell do you think you were doing? Did you not hear the order to retreat?"

"This is the only time we can utilise our full Force powers against them. How can we retreat when now our greatest powers can be used against them?" Neji snapped while peeling of his armour as well as numerous burnt skin along with it.

Cypher snarled. "We'll settle this later. Captain Jaina and Jedi Lord Wong are on their way with reinforcements. The 4th Division has rescued what's left of the 2nd Division. 75 percent of your Division are dead Neji. I'll give you one thing, you did save the other 25 percent with your stupid lone wolf technique. Now stay back and await the arrival of our Lord." They were then approached by twelve Space Marines, these were clad in Terminator Armour, a 2 ½ meter tall and more powerful armour that augmented a Space Marines already considerable strength twenty fold and whose armour literally rivalled any armoured vehicle. Cypher was still clad in his normal power armour though.

He stood beside his Fallen Angels and uttered a brief prayer. Then he ignited the lightsabers attached to his twin Bolt pistols and cried, "For Andy Wong, for the Lion, for the Emperor!" as the entire group teleported to Ranma's position.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

As soon as Neji was taken away, Ranma stepped up his speed and dashed towards the shaper, his fists deflecting even the fingernail fired from the shaper's left hand. The shaper realised that this Jedi Captain's speed far exceeded the other Captain she had fought earlier and even now, he only used his left hand to punch away the attacks whereas with his right, he ignited his lightsaber. With a cry, she used her clawlike legs to leap backwards away from Ranma but the pig-tailed martial artists merely ran faster. The next thing she knew, Ranma was right in her face and thrust a blue lightsaber at her chest.

She finally used her right hand, where the amphistaff twisted itself into a whip and she swung it at Ranma. The serpent managed to intersect the lightsaber just as it was about to penetrate her chest, deflecting the lightsaber away to Ranma's right. But Ranma as a parting shot, launched a devastating kick at her gut which further drove her back as well as propel Ranma away from the rest of her tentacle attacks, which only stopped with Ranma's kick. The shaper fell to the ground in a dishevelled heap of her own spider like legs and a mass of hair tentacles. Despite her pain, she did not loose a beat and instantly vomited a Force Blast at Ranma. The Force Blast was a raging mass of **_HOT _**Dark Side energy that boiled the air around it as it travelled to Ranma.

Ranma kept his chi-aura cool as the Force Blast nearly reached his body. He silently thanked Elder Cologne for teaching him this technique when he had been crippled by Happosai before. Just as the **_HOT _**Dark Side energy intersected with his cold-aura, he cried, "HIRYU SHOTEN HA!" as he punched all of his cold aura into the mass of hot energy. The special Amazon technique utilised his cold-chi to intersect with the opposing hot-chi and promptly turned the mixture of hot and cold energy into a tornado of epic proportions.

**Author's note**

Think of the huge F5 tornado seen in the movie 1996 movie Twister

**End Author's note**

The moment the mixture produced the tornado, Ranma's punch sent it straight towards shaper. The shaper could not believe her eyes as her seemingly small blast of energy had erupted into a 1 mile wide tornado. She tried to escape but the tornado approached too fast for her to dodge back and with a cry of rage and disbelief she was sucked into the tornado, completely powerless even to use her own twisted dark side energies as the Force atmosphere was too chaotic to do any Force technique in the tornado.

The cost of converting most of his chi into cold chi and shooting all of it took its toll on Ranma however. He managed to land on his feet from the backlash of launching his own cold chi, but apparently his Saotome luck was catching up on him as he managed to land right in the middle of the honour guard of the shaper, of which 20 remained and had been further reinforced by dozens more of regular Yuuzhan Vong warriors. Coming down the mountains was yet another wave of Yuuzhan Vong warriors and several of their huge mammoth sized bio-organisms that resembled dragons and served as their heavy artillery and tanks.

"Just my luck," Ranma said, extremely pissed at his luck as he saw every Yuuzhan Vong around him launch themselves at him.

The air around him shimmered and Cypher's Terminators materialised around him and started blasting the Yuuzhan Vong around them with their Storm Bolters, Plasma Cannons, six barrelled auto-cannons and flamers. Cypher also materialised before Ranma. "Mind if I borrowed our head?" he asked.

Before Ranma could answer, Cypher literally leapt and kicked Ranma's head, using it as a lever to propel him to the air. Ignoring the curses that Ranma was raining on him, he pulled out his Bolt pistols and started twirling his body and at the same time, shooting his Bolt pistol with unerring accuracy. Combined with the twelve Terminator's heavy weaponry, the encircling Yuuzhan Vong were driven back and the Terminators and Ranma, who had whipped out a laser blaster and started shooting with it, slowly moved back to the Jedi Guard territory. Unfortunately, fresh reinforcements managed to outflank them and blocked their path back to the Jedi base. Ranma and Cypher saw that the quarters were too close and ordered the Terminators to start close combat.

The Terminators dropped their ranged weapons and drew an assortment of close combat weapons. Three had huge mattocks which were like large hammers and wielded it one handed with a square shield with the emblem of their Emperor's double headed eagle on it. Eight wore a huge gauntlet on their right hands which were powerfists with matter disrupting energy. One more had wielded a twin lightning claws at his huge hands. The twelve Terminators, Cypher and Ranma stood in a circle as they were assaulted by the Yuuzhan Vong warriors. Ranma wielded his blue lightsaber while Cypher's Bolt pistols had their lightsabers as well. They were quickly assaulted on all sides and desperately fought knowing they were too far away to run away.

Suddenly, a horn was blown. The horn rang clear as the cloudy sky broke to allow fresh rays of sunshine to penetrate the battlefield. One ray shone on the besieged Captains and their attackers. The whole battle had been dark and cloudy during the day and the sudden light filled both armies with surprise and wonder. Then both groups began to realise that the reason the breaks in the clouds happened were because of numerous aircraft entering the atmosphere of the planet.

Leading a dozen X-Wings, Y-Wings, B-Wings and 11 Murasame-class transformable mobile suits, was a single red colour humanoid robot.

**Author's note**

Again, I'm terrible at description, all I can say is that Jaina's mobile suit is the one known as Infinite Justice used by Asuran Zala towards the end of Gundam Seed Destiny. Similarly, the Murasames are the ones used by the ORB Union as the mainstay of their mobile suite force.

**End Author's note**

Jaina Organa Solo took note of the chaotic Force powered cyclone and whistled. "Ranma, you really know how to overdo your acts don't you?"

"What's that Justice Leader?" Lowbacca asked from the cockpit of one of the Murasames, hers being painted brown and trimmed with green.

"Nevermind. All squads initiate strafing procedure. Champion Squadron (Y-Wing) and Defender (B-Wing) Squadron, take out those Vong Firebreathers. Rogue Squadron (X-Wings), and Murasames, get those Yuuzhan Vong away from those Space Marines!"

"Acknowledged Gold leader!" the 4 squadrons veered off to their respective targets. From the B-Wings and Y-Wings, came a hail of proton torpedoes that destroyed the Yuuzhan Vong tanks and artillery as well as causing havoc to the troops around them. Rogue Squadron, the Murasames and Jaina started strafing the Yuuzhan Vong with laser fire, driving them back from the besieged Jedi. The Yuuzhan Vong were now thrown in complete disarray as they had no air-support at all. And now the Jedi Guard from beyond the river were moving back across the river to engage the Yuuzhan Vong. It was they who sounded the horn, utilising the time bought by the 3 Jedi Captains to reorganise their ranks and reform the squads to engage the enemy. Now the Yuuzhan Vong were caught between the hammer and the anvil, pounded from above and facing an imminent attack by the remaining Jedi Guard.

Eventually, the honour guard of Yuuzhan Vong was annihilated along with most of the other Yuuzhan Vong. There remaining Yuuzhan Vong were captured and disarmed despite their determination to fight to the bitter end. To avoid further unnecessary bloodshed, Jaina had landed her mobile suit near the last group of nearly two hundred warriors and had drawn a specially crafted sword in battle. The sword didn't look like a sword; it looked more like a giant kitchen cleaver that was as tall as Jaina was. There was no hilt, only a cloth covering the part where the hilt should have been and ending in a long trailing piece of cloth off the end. She, Cypher and Ranma ordered the Jedi Guard to stay back as they walked towards the embattled group.

The Yuuzhan Vong warrior who appeared to be their leader strode forward. "Jjjjjjeeeeddddiiii, wweeeee ssallute yyou and wiilll die innnn batttttlllee wiiiith tyouuuuu!" he hissed before the entire group charged at the three Jedi Captains.

Jaina took the sword (cleaver?) and pointed it at the warriors, releasing all of her Force powers from her body and focusing it into the sword. The cloth at the end of the hilt grew longer and covered her entire body. "Bankai, TENSA ZANGETSU!"

There was a blinding flash as Jaina's Force Aura exploded all around her. Even the Yuuzhan Vong who couldn't feel the Force was pushed back by the change in air pressure that resulted in massive winds blowing strongly from Jaina's direction. When the dust cleared, every one of the Yuuzhan Vong had been stunned. Jaina stood in the middle of the fallen Yuuzhan Vong. Her attire had changed, her orange flight suit was now covered in black body fitting armour as opposed to the massive ones worn by the Space marines. Instead of the sword/cleaver in her hand, she now held a simple black katana, similar to Gerbera Straight's unchanged form and looked completely ordinary except for the strange guard and the short chain hat dangled at the end of the hilt instead of the cloth.

Ranma shook his head as he motioned for his 4th Division to start restraining the Yuuzhan Vong. "Always the show off aren't you Jaina? You just have to tell everyone that I'm not the fastest Jedi Captain there is."

The 3rd Jedi Captain smiled and prompted changed the black katana back into the giant cleaver and hung it from a sheath on her back. "Sorry we didn't get here sooner. I heard you got a very nasty surprise back there."

Cypher growled, "The abominations finaly managed to infuse themselves with the Force and I must say the results are more promising for them then we would have liked. Their shaper could defeat Neji single-handedly and was resistant to Neji's force powers."

"We'll have to report to Hitsugaya and Andy Wong. We'll have to reinforce our anti-Dark Side training to face this greater threat. Ahh, here they come now," she said as a transport approached from the sky.

"Excuse me if you will. I'll have to tend to the wounded. Report my findings to Lord Wong for me will ya Jaina," Ranma asked.

"Alright Ranma. Good work by the way," she said.

"Thanks," Ranma replied as he left for the medical tents.

The transport landed in the middle of the base and Jaina and Cypher went up to the front. A ramp below the ship opened and Jedi Lord Andy Wong and 6th Division Captain Hitsugaya Toshirou descended on the planet. The four captains saluted each other then Andy Wong drew Jaina and Cypher in a hug. "Its good to see you all alive. I feared the worse when I felt the Force presence of the Yuuzhan Vong even though we were already on our way with reinforcements."

"Its OK my Lord. Ranma, praise his skill, defeated it. But now we have…"

"SILENCE!" Hitsugaya shouted all of a sudden, his face contorted with intense concentration. The three Jedi Captains looked at him in alarm as he looked like he was being telepathically attacked. His brows were wrinkled in a severe frown and his eyes were closed.

Suddenly his eyes opened and they **_glowed_ **silver. "BEGONE, SPIES OF SPACE AND TIME!"

_**Back to the Present**_

The Nanban mirror suddenly exploded with light, blinding Happosai and Herb and the mirror grew so hot that Mint dropped it with a cry of pain. The mirror cracked as it reached the ground and the light went off.

Happosai and Herb stood up and stared at the smoking glass of the mirror, which was now cracked again and showed their distorted reflections. Herb was the first to recover. "Well, I'm glad something you did worked for once. Although I must say we're still missing a show of the abilities of that Jedi Lord Andy Wong and Hitsugaya Toshirou."

"I'm not so sure. From what I surmise, that Hitsugaya seems to be sensitive to the realm of time and space. He could feel us as we observed him from the future. I can only deduce that he is a powerful mage who has perfect awareness of himself, including space and time. That being said, we can now extrapolate his abilities and plan anti-mage countermeasures against him," Happosai grinned wickedly. "And I know many weapons that render mages useless."

Herb sighed. "Don't count your eggs too soon. Their Jedi Lord remains the greatest threat of all. Given that he is their Lord and leader, we must assume that he is more powerful than all of them, and everything the other Jedi Captains can do, he can do as well.

"You overestimate that Andy Wong my dear Herb. In any case, in spite of all his powers, his mind I find, is still too human. And human hearts are extremely fragile things when burdened with such stupid emotions like love."

For the first time since getting punched by Andy Wong, Herb smiled. "Indeed, they do appear to have that petty sense of honour. No matter how technologically advanced or magically powerful they are, they remain inhibited by their honour. And if you're thinking what I'm thinking, we'll just have to make our next attempt a little more careful."

"Nevertheless, we must overcome the technology gap and frankly, I have no idea how to bridge it," Happosai confessed.

"Fortunately, I have long researched this area and I believe the answer lies in Nagano Ward. And perhaps, there might be a bonus in this for both of us," Herb said.

Happosai sighed with contentment as Herb laid out his findinsg and reached for his pocket. He took out a series of photographs which were all of the Tendo sisters naked in the bath. But primary among them was Kasumi.

"Dear sweet Kasumi, how I long for thee. You have no idea how important you are to me," Happosai whispered.

To be continued

Sigh, somehow I know I'm going to be hammered again for implying even worse fates awaiting not only the Tendo sisters but the Jedi Captains as well. Sorry guys, just writing what's coming to my mind. I'll promise to organise my story plots properly soon in order to avoid messy plot holes and not just write chapters on the fly.


	19. Chapter 16: Great Balls of Gasses

**Chapter 16: Great Balls of Gasses**

Akane woke up all of a sudden and the first thing she noticed was that the ceiling she was accustomed to staring at was not there. Instead of white plaster, the ceiling was grey and metallic. She stood up with a start, looking around to see the unfamiliar room. She then noticed that her bed was considerably higher above the ground. She was on the top bunk of a double decked bed.

_That's right, we went to sleep after dinner, _she thought. She remembered Ranma and Yoruichi guiding Kasumi, Akane, Nabiki and Ukyo to sleep in a room with two double decked bunks. She didn't know what happened to the rest as they all felt tired, and it was all they could do to change into the clothes that Nabiki had the sense to bring with her when she was teleported to Destiny's Forge.

Akane wondered what time it was. Then she smiled, knowing that in a spaceship, time had no meaning. For all she knew, to the crew it could be daytime and time to do their work while to the Nerima residents, it was way past bed time. She looked at her clock and saw that it was 5am.

_No wonder I woke up, this is supposed to be the time for me to start jogging._

She wondered if it was OK to wander the ship. Akane even now felt strangely lonely without Ranma, even more so when the place she just woke up was completely alien to her. The room was small and sparsely furnished, with the two double decked beds which looked as though they had been attached to the wall, a wash basin, cabinet and a writing table. Embedded into the wall appeared to be a computer screen which was currently dark but displayed the time in Japanese time zone. She decided to take a walk, recalling that Andy Wong had declared them their guests and they were free to roam the ship. She dressed herself in a modest blue blouse and slacks, deciding to appear decent to a ship full of what she perceived to be warrior monks.

The door had a button next to it which Akane pressed. The door slid sideways to reveal a long and cold corridor. Evidently it was night time on the ship as well as the corridor was dimly lit and there was nobody in sight. Akane sighed and wished she had paid more attention when they were walking around the ship from the hangar to the meeting room and then to their bedrooms. She started to walk around for awhile. She eventually noticed that several parts of the corridor were numbered, possibly denoting sections of the ship. From her bedroom the first number she had noticed was the number 16. She decided to take a wild shot and try to head towards number one.

As she turned around a corner, she bumped straight into what felt like two massive pillows.

"Well well, I didn't know that Captain Ranma's fiancée tastes went both ways," a voice said above the pillows. Akane looked up to see the smiling face of the massive chested vice-captain looking down on her and suddenly realised that the two pillows were in fact, her breasts and her face was currently in the middle of them. She gave a small shriek and backed away quickly.

"Aaaa aaaa anoouuuuu, siii nimase. 1 I was just trying to find Ranma since I couldn't sleep," Akane stuttered. She was also blushing furiously at the thought of just having gone through a boy's fantasy; she had no doubt that Kuno would probably sell his entire estate to be where she just was now.

The vice-captain started laughing. "Well, at least someone on this ship appreciates my assets. Of all the Captains I have to be attached to, it has to be the ultra-uncool, cold as stone, stiff as a wood and possibly the cutest boy I've ever seen, Captain Hitsugaya Toshirou."

Akane looked at the woman in disbelief. "You are Hitsugaya kun's vice-captain? But but.. you are…" she suddenly remembered who she was talking to and realised that the woman was still a vice-captain and if she was anything like Yoruichi, it meant that she was far more powerful and Akane shouldn't be provoking her.

"None taken, my dear Akane. I respect my Taichou and although he doesn't show it much, I like to believe he reciprocates. Oh dear, I'm forgetting my manners, I don't think we've been properly introduced yet. I am Matsumoto Rangiku, Vice-Captain of Hitsugaya Toshirou of the 6th Division, battle support and Force Attack specialists," Matsumoto said as she bowed.

Akane also bowed, still blushing as Matsumoto's bow exposed her chest even deeper to Akane. "Ummmm, Tendo Akane, ummmm, that's about it I guess. Currently attending Nerima University though I'm not sure if I'm going to be a student again any time soon considering they just demolished a part of it," Akane frowned as the memories of yesterday came back to her.

Matsumoto nodded; she had been had fully briefed by her Taichou earlier. "To answer your earlier question, Ranma is at the Command Bridge, looking at the stars. Yes, you heard me correctly. The Bridge is the best place to look outside to space on this ship and Ranma has always loved looking at them. My Taichou thought that Ranma was interested in astrology and offered to teach him but apparently, its just a personal enjoyment of his. Amazing the great and macho Saotome Ranma being happy just gazing at stars. "

Somehow it didn't come as a surprise to Akane, who had often seen Ranma on the roof at night just gazing at the stars. "Is it OK for me to visit him? I know your bridge is probably important and restricted but at the very least take a message for him?"

"What kind of message?"

"Ummmmm, I just missed him and was wondering if he could show me around," she stuttered.

"Well, unfortunately rules will be rules and the Command Bridge is strictly for military personnel," her jovial and lazy look saddened for awhile. "Peace has come to my galaxy but the memory of the war is still fresh on everyone's mind. Discipline is still maintained on the ship and Andy Wong bears nobody breaking discipline. You and your sisters better prepare yourselves mentally. Everyone on this ship knows that you are his fiancée but nobody expects Captain Ranma to go easy on you all for training." She looked at her watch. "In one hour, you will receive a wake-up call along with your other friends. Its too late to take another snooze so why don't you come and help me with my duties?"

Akane's eyes lit up. "Really? Work on this space ship? Can I see whatever power source this ship runs on? Or even those weird robots I saw at the hangar earlier?" she asked eagerly.

Matsumoto winced at Akane's line of conversation. "You're not an engineer are you?"

"Uh yes, why?"

"Well, you picked the wrong vice-captain to hang out with. I was actually hoping you could help me deal with some paperwork. You know, process orders for toiletries, repair parts, weapons maintenance, toilet duties, space patrol, the like."

It was Akane's turn to wince. Doing written assignments wasn't her forte.

The beautiful blonde giggled. "Alright, maybe I can get Ranma to see you. You see, just because you can't go to the bridge doesn't mean you can't see him there."

Akane's eyebrows did a Spock maneuver. "Are you sure you're a Jedi? You seem too playful to be one," she remarked suspiciously.

"Well, nobody is perfect. Despite our rigid discipline, Lord Andy Wong also made it clear he did not want an army of automatons. He actually encourages us all to have personal lives, to think beyond the war. I remember the time when Captain Cypher's Space Marines were brought into the Guard. They entirely lives were completely devoted to their Emperor without any thought of the personal, and a huge part of their pain came from their betrayal which rendered many of them spiritually dead. But they now continue to fight for their Emperor and also try to relax and think beyond battles to enjoy the simple pleasures of life, such as drinking tea instead of every day fight fight fight."

"But I digress. I've been itching to disturb my Taichou for a long time. And right now, he is the Captain on duty. Let's kill two birds with one stone shall we?" Matsumoto gave a Cheshire cat grin.

xxxxxxxxxxx

"The solar system is clear. System wide scans detect no alien presence, not even on Mars. There is no there sign of intelligence in this Solar System apart from this planet. If there are any ships hiding in this system, it means their technology is more advance than us," an officer in an Imperial uniform reported to Captain Hitsugaya.

The boy captain continued to read from a datapad held in his hand. "What about patrols around the system? Have they reported any sign of alien craft?"

"No Captain. Members of the 6th Recon Squad have seen nothing. Nevertheless, I took the initiative to ask Captain Jaina to authorise periodic patrols around the system. You should receive a report every 30 minutes."

"Well done Commander Jacob. Continue your duties and inform any of the Captains of anomalies. If there is any alien craft coming into the system, I want that craft followed with the utmost stealth. We are already in the midst of a Chaos threat here. We don't need an alien invasion to follow up on that. Remember, we're only one ship with three thousand Jedi Guards, only 36 of which can fly fighter craft," Hitsugaya finished.

"Understood, excuse me sir," Commander Jacob saluted and went back to his workstation.

Hitsugaya leaned back on the Captain's chair which was situated on a raised platform in the middle of a large room which was filled with crewmembers. The crewmembers mostly worked in two "pits", which were two workspaces sunk into the floor where most of their workstations were situated. Those crew members ran the normal functions of running the ship, such as maneuvering, weapons and maintenance. At the normal level, around the walls of the room crew members analysed sensor screens and communications array to coordinate the functions of the ship and maintain vigilance against outside attacks.

Right in front of Hitsugaya, blocking his view of the galaxy in front of the window, was Saotome Ranma. He didn't really need to look outside the window since he already had sensor reports But sometimes, Ranma could be really melancholic and Hitsugaya didn't like to sense that sort of emotion coming from the gender-confused Captain. He sighed and stood from the chair to walk up to stand beside Ranma.

"Beautiful aren't they?" Ranma said without looking at Hitsugaya.

The boy-captain shrugged. "To me, they are just great balls of gasses burning billions of miles away. Sometimes I try to read the constellations to predict the future but they always turn out wrong. Only an idiot tries to predict the future using stars."

Ranma frowned. "People do use the stars for other things, like navigation you know. So those hocus pocus were based on facts that got blown out of proportion."

"True. But I can't stand fortune tellers who spend their entire lives conning people with their far fetched predictions. And its even worse when they come true because the idiots who believed in them actually make them happen. The line between prophecy and the power of suggestion become screwed."

Ranma chuckled. "Then maybe I should make a prediction that Akane will see me now. And I'll believe in it with all my heart so it'll come true in the next minute."

Captain Hitsugaya snorted. "Oh yes, and my air-headed Vice-Captain will join her as well," he said sarcastically.

They were both looking out of the window while they were talking. And then all of a sudden, Matsumoto's and Akane's head popped out of nowhere in front of them, both of them making grotesque faces.

"GYAH!" the two Captains shouted backing away from the window. One would think the two captains had seen greater horrors than two woman in spacesuits popping their heads into a window but it came just as the two captains made a corny prediction, shocking them enough to hold each other.

Nearly everyone in the bridge went quiet seeing two of the most powerful Jedi on the ship get scared out of their skins. Nobody dared to laugh but one person broke into a grin and resulted in a few muffled giggles among the crew members. Ranma and Hitsugaya then noticed that they were holding each other along with the muffled laughter from the crew. Their minds were then focused on one person.

"MATSUMOTO!" the two Captains shouted as they rushed to the hangar to get out into space and chase the mischievous vice-captain.

Outside, Matsumoto went pale. "OK, I think I overdid it this time. Come on Akane, you're my only chance of being alive now."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx'

When Matsumoto and Akane went back to the hangar, they saw the two captains halfway getting dressed into their power armour, which were self-sustaining space suits by themselves. The two glared daggers which made Matsumoto even more pale as she guided Akane through the airlock. As the airlock pressurised and air entered into it, the pair undressed out of their suits and went to face the music.

"THIS IS AN UNSANCTIONED USE OF A STAR DESTROYER'S EQUIPMENT!" Hitsugaya bellowed at Matsumoto which to Akane looked extremely odd considering Hitsugaya was so much shorter than Matusumoto who was a good 6 feet tall compared to Hitsugaya's four feet. But Akane could feel Hitsugaya's aura raging at the Taichou and knew who was truly scolding whom. Even now Akane thought it was a stupid idea to do something as childish as that. Not to mention they just humiliated them in front of their fellow Jedi.

Ranma strangely enough, said nothing and let Hitsugaya blow his steam off on Matsumoto.

"Umm, Ranma I'm really sorry about doing that. I guess I got carried away by Matsumoto-san," she stammered.

"Don't worry too much about it Akane. It'll take a lot more than a little joke like that to tarnish our honour. And don't worry about Matsumoto. She always gets this from her Taichou. In fact, I have a suspicious feeling that she enjoys it." He then put his arm around Akane's waist. "Up so early? Oh yes, you normally go to jog around this time do you?"

"Yes, and I couldn't go back to sleep so I came looking for you. Then I bumped into Matsumoto."

Ranma looked at Akane and then smiled mischievously. "Lemme guess, did you have an encounter with the lovely bosoms belonging to Vice-Captain Matsumoto?"

Akane was about to blush then noticed Ranma's smirk and her eyes narrowed. "Have you Ranma?" she growled at Ranma.

"Hell no. By the time I met Matsumoto, even my girl half had already grown. No way I can bump my face into her lovely assets."

Akane elbowed Ranma's gut, causing him to wince slightly in paid. "Ranma no baka," she said.

Ranma rubbed his gut then asked, "Well, we got half an hour before your training starts. Anything you would like to see?"

Her eyes lit up and she looked at the giant robots that occupied part of the hangar. "Can you tell me about those? They look so much like the Gundam anime that I watched once."

"Oh the ones that had lots of weird robots fighting? Yeah, I guess it would look like that," Ranma recalled the Tendo sisters watching it before but being the type of person who didn't watch TV, didn't think much of it.

"So which one is yours?" she said running up to the "Gundam" robots.

Ranma said sheepishly, "The one with the hammer sigils on the right shoulder."

Akane looked at the _Gundam _and saw that it unlike the others, it was fat, had a peculiar head with only one eye in it, and had overgrown arms and legs, making it look particularly ugly compared to the sleek forms of the other Gundams. Its body was mostly black but the arms and legs were purplish in colour. There were numerous exhaust ports around the body, legs and arms which Akane guessed was too offset the unusual bulkiness of the mobile suit. And then she noticed it: at the back of the mobile suit, was a mallet.

"Ranma, what do you call this thing over here," Akane growled as her battle aura began to glow dark red.

Ranma sighed and knew the day he dreaded had long arrived.

"Zero Gravity Maneuverable Fighter Zero Three Mark Two, Hammer of Akane," he said just before a mallet materialised in Akane's hand and smashed into Ranma's head.

To be continued.

Sorry guys, not my best chapter yet. I think the stress of my job is still getting to me so I couldn't write better on Ranma and Akane this chapter. I think I'll revisit this chapter and amend it at a later date to make it longer. For now, I hope you are pleased with this little update.

By the way, in regards to the Bleach storyline, I'm actually not a Hitsugaya + Hinamori fan. I'm more supportive of a relationship with his vice-captain Matsumoto Rangiku, who among the vice-captains, her loyalty and dedication to her Taichou is one of the most professional among the Gotei 13.

1: This means, "uuihhhhh uhhhhh, I beg your pardon!"


	20. Chapter 17: Confessions and Lamentations

**Author's notes**

First of all apologies for not finishing this chapter first. Like I said previously, I already had this chapter in draft at the same time I drafted the duel with Cologne, but the duel was completed earlier. Today I made the effort to finish this but instead of sticking it as a side story, I'll put it as a chapter on its own right. Sorry for confusing you all.

To Sith Knight, thank you for pointing out my mistakes previously. Please continue to advise me on any plot holes you can identify. This applies to everyone else. The quality of my fan fic also depends on your reviews.

To everyone, please review and feel free to e-mail me on any questions, even on future plot points and I'll gladly answer your queries.

**Chapter 17: Confessions and Lamentations**

At the sound of a large crash, Hitsugaya stopped his ranting on Matsumoto who was also drawn to the sound. And there they saw it: Saotome Ranma, 4th Jedi Captain of the Healing Division, lying face flat on the floor unconscious. And holding a tremendous amount of chi in her hand, was Tendo Akane who was needless to say, very very pissed off at Ranma.

Before Hitsugaya could say anything, Matsumoto said, "Captain Saotome had it coming. I would too if I named a fat and ugly Mobile Suit like that after my girlfriend."

And it was times like this that Hitsugaya would shut up and let his vice-captain make sense of the whole matter with him.

The fuming Akane then seemed to realise that she was angry and attempted to calm herself by taking deep breaths.

Matsumoto was instantly at Akane's side. "Easy there Akane-chan, relax. Let the anger go. No use keeping it there where it can cause even more harm that it has now." The hammer slowly dematerialised as she became calmer.

Akane gasped as she realised that Ranma was not moving. She quickly knelt down and started shaking Ranma. "Ranma, are you alright? I'm so sorry, I lost my temper again. Please Ranma, don't be hurt, don't run away again," she began more exasperated as she tried in vain, to wake Ranma up.

The boy-captain clicked on his communicator. "Hangar to Medlab. Send a medical team now. Captain Ranma has been injured."

"Medlab to Captain Hitsugaya, please confirm last communication. We thought you said that Captain Ranma is injured," the voice of Shihouin Yoruichi answered.

A vein threatened to burst on Hitsugaya's face. "Is today **_Vice Captain Piss Off Captain Day_**! Get your skanky ass up here and tend to your Captain! Akane knocked him flat on the floor with a hammer made of chi!"

"Ooi, I'm not dead yet," Ranma groaned while still motionless.

Hitsugaya paused, looking at the fallen martial artist. "Whatever, you just took a powerful chi attack right in the head, one you could have avoided I might add."

Akane stood up and looked angrily as Ranma started to move. "Ranma no baka, don't tell me you purposely let me hit you when you could have dodged? Why didn't you? Is it because I'm too weak and you must lower your standard just so I can have a fighting chance?"

"For your information, IT DID HURT KAWAI KUNE! AND IT WAS FAST ENOUGH TO BE UNAVOIDABLE!" Ranma stood up and shouted almost instantly. To Akane's shock, he had a nasty shiner the size of an egg on top of his head. "Congratulations, you just earned yourself the Intermediate Training to Saotome School of Martial Arts. I was thinking of starting the three of you together from scratch but if your so eager to prove yourself, FINE! Let's see how you fare against a Space Marine!" and then with a huff and his nose in the air, he stomped off leaving a very quiet hangar.

Hitsugaya thought about the hammer that was in Akane's hand. To his sight, it was chi given form, something that was immensely difficult to do and required a great deal of discipline. From the looks of it, Akane's anger had focused all of her chi into one dense hammer and it was an impressive weapon, enough to damage Ranma's head which normally could withstand any blunt object that wasn't powered by chi or magic.

It slowly dawned upon the blue haired girl that she had just set her relationship back to square one. She leaned against the "foot" of Ranma's mobile suit and began to cry. "Akane you idiot, BAKA!" she cried as she smashed her fist into the mobile suit, breaking her knuckles in the process.

"Oh great, now look what you've done," Matsumoto hissed as she took Akane's hand away from the suit and took a look at it. It was as she feared, Akane had landed a full blow on hard metal, breaking her knuckles and taking of most of her skin off.

"Matsumoto, bring Akane to the Fallen Angels apothecary. They can take care of Akane's hand," Hitsugaya ordered. "We've got a couple of loose heads to straighten out," he said, eyeing Matsumoto meaningfully.

The well endowed woman nodded. 4th Division may be the physical healing division but it was the 6th Division that tied the six divisions together via strategic grouping and support. And one of those supports was psychiatric services.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hitsugaya found Ranma in the Hall of Illusion, a specially designed chamber that could simulate any battle scenario even those beyond the dimension of the Star Destroyer. At the moment, the room was configured into a recreation of an immense dojo, at least 3 times larger than the Tendo Dojo. In the middle of the chamber, Ranma was practising his martial arts, the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts.

The boy-captain took a moment to observe Ranma. He watched with fascination at Ranma's skill, who moved with amazing grace yet was filled with enormous power. His movements were fluid and were not structured like Andy Wong's Shaolin School. It involved a lot of mid-air attacks that were combined into a myriad of flying kicks. It was truly called **_"anything goes martial arts"_** for a reason, and Ranma had beaten Cypher, Hitsugaya and Jaina in hand to hand combat with it. For Lightsaber Combat, he perfected the **_Form IV Ataru_** , the style of combat that was last used by the great Jedi Master and also in secret, Jedi Lord Yoda. This was the most acrobatic of Lightsaber forms and involved a great deal of jumping and slashing with the lightsaber, a technique that fit in well with the Ranma's style. In this respect, he was better than the rest of the Jedi Captains, even Hitsugaya who also used **_Form IV _**due to his short stature. But as Andy Wong always said, Hitsugaya's was by nature, extremely stiff and structured and it was difficult for the white haired captain to emulate Ranma's seemingly chaotic style of martial arts.

Only Andy Wong had beaten Ranma using his Shaolin School but that was when he first met Ranma. In the years between, duels between the Lord and Master had reached a stalemate, making Ranma Andy Wong's equal in hand to hand combat. Both had a healthy respect for each other's style and after the war, the two had many discussions on how to integrate the two styles together. At Andy Wong's behest however, Ranma decided to document the **_Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts _**first so that he could effectively pass on the art rather than put all of his students through a crash course that could easily be corrupted into a more impure form. Fortunately the Fallen Angels were extremely disciplined and did not deviate from Ranma's teaching, as did the rest of the Jedi Captains.

With a howl of rage, Ranma sped up his kata, completely absorbed in it. The entire room was electrified with chi as Ranma's battle aura was dangerously high, something that Hitsugaya normally saw happened when Ranma was in a true battle. But now he was merely releasing stress and Hitsugaya decided enough is enough.

"RANMA, EN GARDE!" the boy-captain ignited his lightsaber and leapt into the whirlwind of destruction that was Ranma practising the **_Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts_.**

The pig-tailed martial artist instantly ignited his own lightsaber and started parrying with Hitsugaya. The two fought using the**_ Form IV Ataru _**style, looking very much like two cats fighting each other as they used the advantage of an immense chamber to fully utilise their acrobatic moves. The goal of the fight was to cut of each other's hair.

"Alright Ranma, what's eating you? I haven't seen you so mad over something so trivial," Hitsugaya said as he dodged a nasty blow aimed for his hair.

"Easy for you to say, you've never experienced her blows before. And I can't believe she can still loose it after something so like being named after a mobile suit," Ranma shouted as he redoubled his efforts to shave Hitsugaya's head.

"Well it is an ugly model that you chose and besides, you're making the matter worse by being angry! Weren't you going to be the patient one and help her deal with her temper," to stop Ranma, Hitsugaya immediately formed a shield of ice to separate him from Ranma's attack.

Ranma smashed his fist into the wall of ice and shattered it with his chi. "Well this time she's gotta learn that no way am I going to take her abuse quietly! She knows I love her yet she still does that! MOKO TAKABISHA!" Ranma shot a large chi blast that was the equivalent of a Storm Bolter Explosive Shell at Hitsugaya, who countered it with a Force Shield.

"Oh come on, now you're being childish. You're just looking for an excuse to get back at her. Its not like she's been malleting you since you got back, in fact this is the first time she lost her temper. And I'm perfectly willing to bet all my watermelons that she didn't mean to harm you!"

"WELL GOOD, ITS ABOUT TIME I GET SELFISH FOR ONCE! KACHU TENSHIN, AMAGURIKEN!"

With inhuman speed, Ranma dashed right in front of Hitsugaya to rain 500 punches in one second. Only to find that he couldn't. In fact, he realised in horror that his entire body was frozen stiff. He tried to say something but found his throat slowly tightening until he could hardly breathe. He glared at Hitsugaya, finally understanding that the 6th Division Captain was using the Force. And Hitsugaya's mastery of the Force was well beyond Ranma, in fact if the boy-captain wanted to, he could turn Ranma into thin air right now.

"How dare you violate the Jedi code?" Hitsugaya snarled as his Force grip on Ranma's throat tightened. The pig-tailed martial artists struggled to muster his Force powers but he was growing more and more panic at the loss of control and couldn't focus his thoughts to form a counter-attack.

"14 years I have taught you the Jedi code, what it means not only to our duty as a Jedi but to our personal lives as well. A Jedi lives for others, not for himself. We are servants of peace and justice. We respect the individual but for the Greater Good, our personal lives are secondary. And now you tell me that you WANT TO BE SELFISH! THAT JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE SUFFERED MORE THAN ANYONE YOU ARE ENTITLED TO THIS TANTRUM! LISTEN TO YOURSELF, YOU ARE CONTRADICTING YOUR VERY OWN ADVICE THAT YOU MADE TO AKANE LAST WEEK WHEN YOU EXPLAINED THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HER AND YORUICHI!" for the first time in a long while, the white-haired captain was angry and his eyes glowed silver as his battle aura also spilled over.

Ordinarily, Ranma would be too caught up trying to breathe to notice his words but Hitsugaya was making sure that part of Ranma's mind was completely aware of what he was saying. And now, after being thrashed by the diminutive captain, Ranma finally calmed down and became downcast. He stopped struggling and only then did Hitsugaya release his Force Grip on Ranma, as well as his mental blocks that prevented Ranma from mustering his mind defences. The pig-tailed martial artist slumped to the floor and just knelt there, silently battering himself.

"Oh God, Hitsugaya, what have I done? Why must it always end like this?" Ranma cried.

"How the hell do I know? I never had a girlfriend who liked to wallop me. But I wish to remind you Ranma, that you have already grown up. Maybe the prospect of going back to a life of relative peace is making you soft, I don't know. But I'm telling you as long as WE are here, you're damn well going to take control of your life and not let life control it for you. You love Akane and that's the simple truth. Please don't ruin the promise you made 15 years ago to resolve this mess," Hitsugaya said, now calm and without a trace of anger.

Ranma could only listen and try to calm his mind which was currently in a whirlwind of despair and confusion.

xxxxxxxxxxx

The first thing Kasumi noticed when she got up was the empty bunk where Akane lay only a few hours ago. She looked at her clock and saw that it was 5:15am, around the time that Akane would normally go for her morning jog. The second was that the door was open and in the doorway stood the Jedi Lord Andy Wong himself. He was dressed in a black kimono with the Jedi Captain signature white coat over it. She couldn't see the back of it but she assumed correctly, it would be the Chinese character of Number 1 sewn at the back.

"Good morning Kasumi, you all have to go to the Hall of Illusion in half an hour. You'll find some appropriate clothes in the cabinet for your training today. Kindly wake up Ukyo and Nabiki, they must be there in precisely that time."

Kasumi looked at the clock, which currently showed 5:30am. "Oh my, that doesn't leave us much time. Where is Akane anyway?" she asked while yawning.

Andy's eyes remained passive. "I don't know but I felt a very angry Ranma just before I opened your door. Very few things can anger Ranma nowadays and since the Amazons are still in their quarters, and Ryoga is still locked up in his room, I'm guessing that those two managed to get on each other's wrong side again.

That statement woke her up instantly. "Where are they? Oh my, they were doing so well till now, why does this have to happen?" she said as she hurriedly pulled off her nightie before she realised that the door was opened. She snapped her head at the door to find that the door had closed the moment she turned to look at the door.

The com next to the door crackled to life. "Next time Kasumi, be more aware of your surroundings. You have a lovely body but I do not wish to commit adultery with my thoughts. Otherwise your sister would be fully justified in calling me a pervert later," Andy voice said from the intercom as Kasumi blushed furiously.

"Oh my, I better get going," as she hurriedly put on a white gi that had been hung in the cabinet as well as a pair of slippers. Whatever training they were going to do, she thought it would be in a dojo like environment.

"So where is Akane and Ranma?" she asked the Jedi Lord, who did not look like he had seen Kasumi naked at all. Although she knew that the Jedi Lord had been married before and moreover, had already looked at her naked once already, he seemed to be immune to women's charms unlike Ryoga whose nose bled at the sign of any sort of sexuality.

"The Fallen Angels have a small apothecary to cater for their needs. Hitsugaya sent Akane to the apothecary for healing: apparently she hit her hand against a wall. Ranma is currently sparring with Hitsugaya: I can feel their battle auras."

Kasumi looked surprised. "Really? I thought if both of them fought, their battle auras would engulf the entire ship. Aren't the Jedi Captains that powerful?"

"True but the entire ship is protected with anti-magic resistant alloys to protect against magical or Chaos attacks. Even so, their battle is powerful enough that some of it leaks and I can feel it. Hang on," Andy Wong concentrated for a moment then sighed with sadness. "It appears that Hitsugaya is EXTREMELY PISSED off."

The elder Tendo sister did not like the sound of it. "What does that mean?"

"It means that Ranma has had his ass kicked. There's no way Ranma can fight Hitsugaya at full strength."

"I thought all of you Jedi Captains were equal to each other in power," Kasumi said, not so much surprised about Ranma being defeated as much as the diminutive captain being stronger than Ranma.

"Not quite true. We all balance each other well and together, almost no army can withstand us. We all have our weaknesses and one of Ranma's is that magically speaking he is not up to Hitsugaya's level, who is an Alpha Grade psyker."

Kasumi raised an eyebrow. "which means…."

"Hitsugaya can destroy the city of Tokyo with the power of his mind. And every single inhabitant in it. All under 10 minutes. I know. I was there the last time he did it."

"Oh my, Hitsugaya-kun?" Kasumi was shocked at the extent that Andy Wong described his power.

"Oh yes, he was quite a demon in his time. For now, that's one of the reasons his body is that of a 10 year old. And to be honest, it worked well for him in the end."

Kasumi looked at Andy Wong. "You did that to him? Making him look like a small boy forever? Because we can all tell that he is older than he looks, and not just a genius kid."

"He was a genius kid who was blessed with humungous power. He wielded magic like clay and could shape it in whatever he wanted. But that's another story, and it is Hitsugaya's story to tell. Anyway, Ranma can't beat him using magic or even chi. He hasn't reached that level yet, Jedi Captain though he is. But we digress. I see one of my captains greatly distressed as is Akane. Its time to do damage control before Ranma makes Akane fight a Space Marine."

"Surely he wouldn't do that," Kasumi was horrified at Andy's thought of what Ranma would do.

Andy shrugged. "Makes sense really. If Akane is strong enough to hurt Ranma, she definitely can bypass a lot of the beginning chapters of the Anything Goes Martial Arts. She can skip the strength and stamina development and jump straight to agility and finesse stages."

The brown haired girl digested this and sighed. _Oh well, its time for all of us to train hard now_.

"Come, let us see Akane first," Andy said as he walked briskly away with Kasumi following behind.

"May I ask you something?" Kasumi asked meekly at the tall Jedi Lord.

"Of course Kasumi. I'm sorry we did not get a chance to talk earlier, what with the battles and all," Andy said.

"I know you said that Ranma's story with you is his own tale to tell, and that we shouldn't ask about it until he himself is ready to tell it. But I would like to know how you've been. I haven't seen you since I was a child and you hardly seem to have aged. Although I realise time may flow differently for the Jedi Captains. Did you recover from your sadness? I always went back to the park to search for you for awhile but you never returned," Kasumi said sadly as she remembered always cutting across the park after her shopping to search for the enigmatic Chinese man.

Andy paused before an elevator door and pressed a button to request for it. "I'm sorry for not getting a message to you to thank you after that Kasumi. But after my moment of weakness, and your subsequent healing of my spirit, I returned back to my home universe to deal with some issues. Unfortunately, I failed dismally and ended up being a slave for four hundred years."

Kasumi stared at Andy. "Four hundred years?" she exclaimed just as the elevator door opened. He entered it and then gestured her to do as well, which she did.

"Time flies disproportionately between our two universes. This is not under my control and defies all of my current understanding. Actually the last time I was here was fifteen years ago in my reckoning after I was freed from my slavery by the valiant Jedi Captain Jaina Organa Solo. This was during the start of our crusade against the vile invasion of the Yuuzhan Vong race on my home galaxy. I knew it would be a battle that could kill me so I intended to come back and seek you out, before I plunged myself of the deep end of a war. But instead of finding you, I found Ranma instead. Again I won't tell you his story but suffice he agreed to become my student and went back with me to fight in the war," Andy said.

"Did you not see me because Ranma asked not to return to Nerima? Because of his, I mean, **our** vow to forge our own destinies?" Kasumi asked.

"Yes indeed. He did not want to return to Nerima, nor did he want to leave my side as my student. I relented, putting aside my desire to seek you in Nerima for his need to seek his destiny."

The elevator door opened and the two people entered it, Andy Wong pushing a button to make the elevator move along the way.

"Ranma has gone through massive changes in his psyche but he has never been rid of his inherent desire to be the best of martial arts, which in my context, equals a soldier. To tell the truth, he's not completely cured of his arrogance yet, though it failed to manifest itself in the final stages of the Yuuzhan Vong war thankfully. It maybe that coming back to Nerima, having peace after such a long period of time brought a false sense of security to Ranma who started to believe that everything would turn out fine in the end. Even when we felt Happosai's aura, Ranma thought it would be nothing compared to what he has already faces as a Jedi. And now we find ourselves with daemonic invasion that is quite up to our level."

"This will not be a one sided battle Kasumi. Already I can feel many forces in this world stirring, and I sense that most of it will be on Happosai's side. That is why we must find the forces of good in this world and muster them less they be engulfed one by one by the forces of evil."

"Other forces? You mean other than the Musk? I've heard from Ranma before about the Phoenix people, whom Ranma had to fight and kill their king, Saffron I believe his name is. Could they also be our enemies?" Kasumi asked.

"Strangely enough, they were not at Happosai's conference. My guess is that they've not fully recovered from Ranma's wrath or choose to tend to their King who was reborn as all phoenixes do when they die. Even then killing Saffron truly changed Ranma's life forever and he became a lot more serious then. Unfortunately, it didn't get a chance to improve his character before that disastrous wedding," Andy said.

Kasumi breathed a sigh of relief. She had heard the whole story from Akane as well as the Jusenkyo Guide who passed by shortly after Ranma left to give him some reward money for practically saving the countryside from the Phoenix King. The money which numbered about 1 million yen, was currently stashed in a bank account opened by Kasumi without the knowledge of Nabiki. She felt sorry for not trusting her sister but until her ordeal, Kasumi was not really sure what went on in Nabiki's head.

"I guess it finally dawned on him that martial artists not just about winning fights and glory. When that realisation came, much of the fun from martial arts was taken away from him, hence his giving up his narrow life objective of being the best martial artists in the world. And wanting something more than that," Kasumi said.

Andy Wong sighed. "Kasumi, please be prepared to face possibility of killing another yourself soon. If I had it my way, nobody except me would have to kill and shed blood. Unfortunately, I am not Jesus who has already died so that we could be free of our sins. We must bear with the consequences of our sins which is why the entire galaxy suffers so much. Despite my powers, I am not God. I can only strive to emulate my Lord and Saviour, because it was He who died for me first and therefore I follow His word to please Him."

Kasumi sighed. It was something that she realised she might have to do from the moment she heard that she was in the center of this war. "Master Wong, I realise that in wars, people die. I was awake when the September 11th attacks happened in 2001 New York. I know very well the kind of messed up world that we live in without having to know about the rest of the universe. I've seen the face of the Bali bombers, smiling and laughing at their deeds, as well as the arrogant face of President George Bush as he dispenses his policy as he pleases without giving a thought of the consequences of a long drawn out war on terror that even now eats at the American people."

The Jedi Lord noted the solemness of her tone. Although he already knew that Kasumi was very intelligent person, it astounded him how accurate with her view of the current world was, especially when she lived in a country that was supposedly America's ally or lap dog.

"But can we truly be simply rid of the world's problems by killing all of these bad men with one stroke? Personally, I don't see how we can heal this world with even more wars and killings. That is why I cannot confirm that I want Happosai or Herb dead. I don't even know them well to completely understand what made them that way. It may seem lame and naïve to think this way but frankly, I would go mad if I were to think there was nothing I can do to change the ways things are."

The elevator stopped and its doors opened to reveal an unusually dark corridor. What was strange was that instead of lights, there were actually torches lighting the corridor. The corridor walls looked like stone rather than metal walls and Kasumi did not really like the feeling of this floor. It just seemed too gothic for her. Andy was unperturbed by the décor and walked down the corridor pausing awhile to motion Kasumi to follow him.

"This level is part of the Fallen Angels sanctuary, a home away from home of sorts. I gave them this sanctuary so that they can remember where they come from and strive to return to it as loyal servants to their Emperor once again. Most of Cypher's fifth division also reside on this level."

"It is rather dark and scary. But strangely enough, I don't feel any evil feelings," Kasumi remarked.

"Looks can be deceiving. And unfortunately, it applies to the bad guys more than the good guys. You are wise beyond your years Kasumi. I sense the conviction of your voice and the strength of your will. That is why I myself would personally instruct all of you, at least in the very beginning. Actually, that is part of my First Division."

"Yes, what does the First Division do? Also I notice that there are only five vice-captains but there are six divisions. How is it that you don't have a vice-captain?" Kasumi asked.

"The other 5 captains are already my vice-captains. They are the ones who form the Divisions who specialise in one or a few areas of warfare. For me however, the First Division comprises of the general troops, the normal Jedi who do not find any particular talent, or rather do not specialise in any of the other five division's warfare. They are the _'normal' _Jedi so to speak, the basic troops of the Jedi Guard. This does not mean that they are any less powerful than the other five divisions but they essentially act as a strategic reserve for the others. Also for some of the Jedi Guard, they're talents may take more time to manifest before they choose their division or are called to the divisions."

"Really? You mean you are the one who trains the normal soldiers? I would have thought your First Division would be the elite of the elite, or at least specialise in something other than the other five divisions," Kasumi said, astonished at the First Division's role.

Andy laughed as they continued to walk the corridor. "Most people assume that. What they don't realise is that I myself am a jack of all trades, master of none, EXCEPT in the area of unarmed combat. This is why I equal Ranma in martial arts, who is considered a specialist in unarmed combat. If I were to challenge Hitsugaya for example in Force Powers, I would lose. Similarly if I piloted my Mobile Suit against Jaina, I would also lose. Even in the area of sword fighting and firearms tactics, I would lose to Cypher."

"There is one area which the First Division specialises though: demon hunting and exorcism."

"Oh my, are they Christians like yourself?"

"Indeed. My approach to demon hunting is rooted in the Christian Faith. This is not to say the other divisions do not know how to fight demons. I do not want to frighten you but one of the trials every Jedi Guard, whether he or she or it is Force Sensitive or not, is the Trial of Fire. This is the exam that will test the resistance of your very soul. I cannot say what it entails but suffice to say, it'll make you go through hell."

Kasumi looked at Andy Wong. "Lord Wong, are you sure we can go through our training? From what you say to me, this isn't just about making us physically stronger isn't it?"

The Jedi Lord sighed. "No Kasumi, it isn't just physical. It would be mentally and spiritually as well. You see, one problem with the Jedi in the past was that they were taught to avoid the Dark Side of the Force without really learning what it is. It was a taboo subject: as long as the method was classified as leading to the Dark Side, the Jedi were taught to avoid it without knowing why. Those who did were seduced by the methods which greatly enhanced their power. But power is a double edged sword. With such great power but no responsibility, those who learnt those methods became corrupt and addicted to their own power. The Jedi Code as they were taught, suddenly seemed outdated, impractical and most of all, weak. They saw the Jedi Code as an inhibit to their growth, which is exactly what it had become. And so the Jedi grew weak while those who secretly embraced the so-called Dark methods grew in power. This growing conflict between the Jedi and those who would eventually call themselves the Sith eventually came to a head in the Sith Wars, which ravaged the galaxy and rendered the Jedi nearly extinct."

"But what is sad is that some of the Force Powers that were described as Sith weren't bad to begin with. It was only the lack of knowledge and discipline that led the Jedi who learnt them to become evil. Few actually learnt the true meaning of their power and wielded them carefully with restraint and humility. Most simply became corrupt. All of this could have been avoided, if the Jedi Council, the governing body of the Jedi, rigorously trained and educated the Jedi in preparation to go through the Trial of Fire, which exposes the said Jedi to the darkest side of the Force and the perils of Chaos. But sadly, the quality of Jedi training dropped dramatically. It came to the point that the Trial of Fire rendered nearly every initiate into the Jedi completely insane."

"Why did the quality drop? You imply that before the Trial of Fire, there are areas of training that must be pass. What are they? And where were you when this was happening?" Kasumi asked.

"The Trial of Fire is the ultimate test of one's mental and spiritual strength. Your code of honour will make or break you at this time. Of course we don't put a Jedi initiate through the Trial of Fire immediately. There is a good deal of training involved, seven years in fact where you are literally cut off from the rest of the galaxy. One year for the exceptionally brave and skilled. There are quite a few special cases that actually could go through the Trial of Fire earlier despite not completing the earlier physical training. One of the Jedi Lords, Kira Yamato was one."

"But as I said, the quality of the training dropped in the course of peaceful years, and was not made as rigorous as it should have been. All the tests are designed so that when a Jedi initiate does take the Trial of Fire, the Jedi WILL pass it. But then the Jedi Council dropped the requirements or pre-requisites to take the Trial of Fire so many Jedi who were not properly trained took the Trial of Fire. And came out of it either completely insane or were judged to be mentally unfit for the Jedi Order."

"At this time, I was in charge of the Jedi who were tasked with exploring unknown regions of space and acting as ambassadors to the Republic, the interstellar organisation that encompassed the known galaxy at the time. Our task was twofold: to seek out new worlds and civilisations and bring them into the Republic, or at least ally with them to prevent future aggression. The second was to seek out unknown threats and take action to prevent the Republic from being invaded. It was both a diplomatic and military mission. Many worlds were brought into the Republic in my time."

"Though I was a Jedi Lord, I was not part of the Jedi Council. Nevertheless, there was another Jedi Lord sitting back in the Jedi Council who was supposed to ensure that the Jedi stayed true to its oaths and training. But tragedy struck: he was killed in battle by a high number of treacherous Jedi who had turned evil. These Dark Jedi struck at the heart of the Jedi Temple on the planet Corusscant which was the capital of the Republic. The Jedi Lord Uzumaki Naruto, one of the bravest and noblest men I had ever known, sacrificed himself to stop a massive demon the Dark Jedi had summoned. The cowards did not even dare to face the Jedi Lord together: and to defeat the Jedi Lord, they succeeded in doing the impossible: summon the great chaos god Khorne himself."

"Oh my dear Kasumi, you cannot comprehend the price of summoning the blood god, which is manifested of anger and hatred. I can only say dozens of planet populations were slaughtered and the act itself was enough to drive many of the Jedi insane, even those who had gone through the Trial of Fire. But they succeeded and Khorne himself came to the material world on Corusscant and no one could harm he who is born of anger and murder and is the master of all weapons of destruction. All except one, Jedi Lord Uzumaki Naruto, the one who defeats and wins the hearts of his enemies. Moreover, he has also been cursed by Chaos itself, as he acted as a prison for a great chaos demon for most of his life, until he purified the demon and it became his ally and secondary source of power."

"But I digress. This conflict, despite its magnitude, was very short and took place in one year. I and the rest of the Jedi under my command were not in our galaxy when this happened. In fact, we were at another dimension, fighting off a malevolent race of beings known as the Necrons from invading our space. This took place in Cypher's galaxy in fact, millions of years before his Imperium was formed. To this battle, nearly all of the thousand Jedi under me were called and we fought a bitter war which we finally won when we sealed the dimensional gate that linked my galaxy to theirs for many thousands of years. When we returned to our galaxy, we found to our grief of the conflict the consumed Jedi Lord Uzumaki Naruto's life and that hundreds of years had passed, during which the Jedi Council had lost much of its wisdom. Like I said, the quality had dropped to the point that the Trial of Fire was abandoned because nobody could pass it. Much of the knowledge of fighting the Dark Side and Chaos had been lost in the conflict. Any technique associated with the Dark Side was shunned and education on the Dark Side and Chaos ceased completely. And worst of all, they rejected me and the Jedi who followed me, blaming me for my teachings which they say, led to the Dark Jedi having the knowledge to summon the blood god Khorne."

The Jedi Lord stopped for awhile, and Kasumi was shocked to see a tear coming out of his eye. "Please Lord Wong, if it is too much for you, you do not need to tell me now. It isn't important to me and I'm sure I do not deserve to hear your story."

"Never, ever, say that you are unworthy to me again, Kasumi-san," the Jedi Lord growled. "You are more worthy than any of those…. sissies at the Jedi Council ever were," he said softly as he continued to recall the day he was betrayed by the Jedi Order.

Kasumi noticed that they were outside a door, on it was a plate stating "Apothecary". She hurriedly took a handkerchief and wiped the tear of Andy Wong's face. This snapped the Jedi Lord out of his memories and a feeling of déjà vu swept over the Jedi Lord as he saw Kasumi wipe the tear off.

"I'm sorry for dredging up such painful memories. Perhaps another time will come for you to finish the story. For now, am I right to understand that in the end, we will ALL be ready for the Trial of Fire?" Kasumi asked.

The Jedi Lord composed himself and said a silent prayer to God, confessing his anger and hatred at the past and submitting it to his Lord.

"Yes Kasumi. But I doubt we will have enough time to go through the Trial of Fire before Happosai strikes, although we do have a technique that will lengthen time. Nevertheless, you and your friends will be personally trained by the Jedi Captains. They will make sure your hearts and souls remain strong and pure in days to come. But first of all, let's see to your sister's needs," the Jedi Lord said as he opened the door.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Matsumoto had to admit it: Akane had guts of steel. One problem with the Space Marines medical skills was that they shunned anaesthetic completely in their operations. To them, pain was a testament of their faith and loyalty to their Emperor. She was sitting on a chair as the Marine Apothecary, who wore distinctive white power armour performed a laser surgery on Akane. The blue haired girl gritted her teeth but did not scream.

When the Apothecary finished, Akane's hand was healed. "Your will is remarkable. My skills are for my battle brothers but you have just withstood our rites of healing without shedding a tear. I salute you in the name of the Emperor," the Space Marine beat his right arm to his chest. Akane could only smile and nod as she was still in great pain.

"Thank you Brother Gilnaes. Akane-chan, are you well enough to get up? You can lie down and rest somewhere more comfortable," Matsumoto said gently.

"Thank you," Akane whispered as Matsumoto guided her to sit in comfortable couch which was in a sort of waiting room at the Apothecary. The blue haired girl looked pale but at the moment, she was more depressed than in pain.

"I don't understand, why must it always be like this? Why must I always get jealous and angry before I even think? And now I think I've driven Ranma away again."

Matsumoto gently said, "Your anger is quite understandable Akane. It may have begun at your mother's death and your father's utter inability to help you deal with your grief. Rather than grief you turned to anger and focused on martial arts as an outlet. Isn't it right Akane?"

Akane looked at the other woman. "How can you simply deduce my life like that? You've never met me before and now you presume to judge how I feel based on knowing me for only a few hours?"

"Did you think that Ranma kept his love of you quiet throughout his whole tenure with the Jedi Guard?" Matsumoto replied. "It is true that both of you love each other but many times he has seeked out advice concerning his relationship with you. And from his discussions, we have fleshed out a great deal of your relationship with him and I'm glad to say that it is indeed true love. But more importantly he has sought to learn what made you this way and based on his account, along with data we've been collecting on you and your Nerima friends, we can pretty much some up most of your characters with an accuracy of 98.72 percent."

"Based on our data and Ranma's account, your angry nature was cemented when a boy named Tatewaki Kuno made a declaration that anybody who wished to date you had to fight you. This resulted in half the male population of Nerima to attack you every morning, including Kuno himself."

"Yes, those idiot boys thought I would willingly sleep with them if they defeated me. How they could even accept that idea was something I could never comprehend. Worst, nobody stopped the fights, not even the teachers who Kuno bribed to be ignorant of the matter. So I was forced to fight morning after morning against a horde of boys who were all after my body. I didn't meet any boy in school who thought the whole thing wrong. Those boys who didn't participate did not only because they were non-martial artists or were too scared to beat me. Eventually, I came to believe that all boys were insensitive jerks. The only male who had ever been kind to me was the doctor Tofu Ono," Akane said all of this angrily as she recalled the horror of fighting day after day hormone crazed boys.

"Until Ranma came along didn't he?" Matsumoto said.

Akane nodded. "I just couldn't believe it. I didn't want to believe that Ranma was in fact, a good person. He was a boy and he had to be perverted like the rest. A boy being good? It was like the whole universe turning upside down. And so for a long time, I was distrustful and the only thing that kept me from simply killing him was deep inside, I knew that he was good and I had seen many times with my own eyes of his noble nature, especially compared with his father. His ability to put his foot in his mouth didn't help either and always succeeded in ticking me off and making me mallet him into the sky."

"Over the two years, I kept denying that I was falling in love with him because reality seemed to delight in confusing our relationship. On the one hand, fate would always have Ranma rescue me, and do many things that might even be considered romantic, by his standards anyway. But at the same time, everything would conspire to keep us from acknowledging our love, whether it's a new fiancée, a new challenger, Happosai, the fiancée brigade, Cologne and virtually everybody else. It was just so frustrating that the interruptions wouldn't stop."

Akane then said tearfully, "Did Ranma tell you about his battle with Saffron the Phoenix King?"

Matsumoto nodded. "In minute details. Right down to the part where he cried and confessed his love to you while you were seemingly dead."

Akane's eyes widened. "He did? I honestly don't remember clearly what happened after I _'died'_. What I do know was that it was Ranma's voice that called me back. From the darkness I heard him and I sought him, desperate to see his face, hear his voice, feel his touch. And I finally came back into his arms. I was truly happy to see his face happy at me being alive. I didn't know he confessed his love. The baka never told me he did. I thought our love was cemented then, after all, Ranma had just killed another being for my sake. But even then, God still seem to want to toy with our lives. Of course the whole wedding thing happened. Ranma had to lose his head over the Jusenkyo cure and the fiancées, Happosai, Ryoga and God knows who else had to crash the entire wedding. And all that was left was an empty wedding."

"First of all Akane, do you admit your problem?" Matsumoto asked.

The blue haired girl wiped her tears and said, "Yes, I want to get rid of this anger. But I'm so afraid of letting it go."

"Akane, I will tell you now that your anger is not gone. It is buried but it still remains. Its not just a matter of conquering your anger. It is releasing it, letting go the resentment and hatred that has marred your relationship with Ranma for so long. But fear not Akane-chan. Ranma still loves you and he understands you more than anyone else on this ship. He just temporarily forgot it. At the moment, my Taichou is in the process of reminding him. Rest assured that he will forgive you. But you must also forgive him Akane, for losing his cool as well as naming his fat mobile suit after you. Are you willing to that Akane?"

"Yes Vice-Captain Matsumoto," Akane stood up from the couch and bowed to Matsumoto. "Please, will you help me do so?"

The Vice-Captain of Sixth Division, also the self-styled match maker among the Jedi Guard and psychologist specialising in family relationships, grinned. "Of course Akane. And not just me, Jedi Lord Andy Wong, Captain Jaina, Captain Cypher, Captain Neji, my own Taichou and everyone else on this ship will as well. You only have to ask Akane. But of course, stand on your own two feet as well: after all there is only so much we can advise. Implementation, is all up to you."

"Thank you Matsumoto. I'm truly sorry for making so much trouble on my first morning here," Akane said, much more cheerful now despite her ordeal.

"Please do not apologise. It is my duty after all and I owe it to Ranma as well, who has saved many from my division as well as myself and my Taichou. And I like you Akane. Few can admit their mistakes so openly yet you have not made any self-denial in our entire conversation."

"Well, I have had two years to think about it before Ranma came back. I guess I was foolish to think my anger was gone," Akane sighed.

"No matter. But communication is very important in a relationship Akane. My advice is to speak to Ranma now before the rest of the Nerima residents wake up," Matsumoto looked at her watch and her eyes widened. "Its 5:50am. The other would be awake now and probably dressing to go to the Hall of Illusion where you will start your training. You had better go, NOW!"

Akane was alarmed and raced for the door which opened before she reached it. She was surprised to see her older sister and the Jedi Lord Andy Wong outside it, who were also just as surprised to see her about to dash out. "Good morning Akane-chan, are you alright?" Kasumi asked.

The blue haired girl smiled and gave her sister a small hug. "Sorry sis, can't talk right now. Got to apologise to Ranma before hell breaks loose again," and with that, she dashed down the corridor towards the elevator.

The Vice Captain appeared in front of the Jedi Lord. "Reporting for duty SIR," Matsumoto stood at stiff attention while saluting, a stark contrast to her normally laid back attitude.

Andy Wong smiled. "Been working early I see. Mission status?"

"Mission complete Sir!" Matsumoto said, still standing at military attention.

"Carry on then," Andy said, after which Matsumoto relaxed, bid a quick good morning to Kasumi and raced after Akane.

Kasumi this time, made no pretension of her confused expression. "Did I just miss something? Akane looked…. different just now. Not happy but not sad either."

"Don't worry Kasumi. It just means Matsumoto has succeeded in clearing another relationship mess," the Jedi Lord said while thinking to himself _'I hope she doesn't decide to stick her nose into mine_.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hitsugaya sat next to Ranma who was quietly crying as he sorted out his emotions. He would have liked to put his arms around Ranma's shoulder but unfortunately he was too small to do so while sitting down.

Eventually Ranma, wiped the tears of his face and blew his nose. "I can't continue today with this over my head. I've got to talk to her now and sort this out before the mad house comes."

"Its already 5:55am. Its better you sort it out later. Besides, knowing my vice-captain, she would already have made Akane seen the light as well. And there's no more time."

"To hell with the rest, I'm going to see her now," and with that he ran to the door and opened it only to find Akane on the other side.

"Ranma?"

"Akane?"

One look at each other's eyes was enough. They embraced each other tearfully.

"Akane I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have named the MS after you, I shouldn't have shouted…."

"Its my fault, its my temper, I keep on thinking that boys are idiots when you clearely are't…."

These were more or less what they said to each other for about five minutes before Hitsugaya interrupted.

"Excuse me, I hate to break up your little soap opera but the fiancées are right around the corner. Its best we prevent this little drama from becoming public. Compose yourselves and we can begin our training preparations," the boy-captain had returned to his normal serious and no-nonsense demeanour.

The two looked at each other meaningfully than reluctantly broke their embrace and cleaned their faces.

"Hall of Illusion, restart Tendo Dojo simulation, place the Captains Chairs configuration at the north side of the square," Hitsugaya told the computer program of the Hall. Their surroundings shimmered and the dojo environment reappeared without the chaos of Ranma and Hitsugaya's duel and there also appeared a number of chairs on the north side of the square as well.

Ranma pointed at the side of the square which was nearest to the door. "Akane, kneel down at the side over there. We will soon start the training."

"OK Ranma. Any idea what we'll be doing today?"

The Jedi Lord and Kasumi then walked into the dojo. "First of all, I think its best that we find out what are the fighting abilities of the Chinese Amazons. And to do so, I think its high time Ranma had a rematch with Elder Cologne. We will soon be fighting along side the Chinese Amazons and you and your sisters need to be more familiar with their fighting styles. Moreover, it will give you an idea of Ranma's strength and how much you can aspire to match it. As I've told Kasumi, in the matter of martial arts, Ranma has truly become the greatest not only of this Earth but among the Jedi Order, which is made up of at least a hundred other non-human species, all of which have their own warrior traditions, which Ranma has beaten," the Jedi Lord said.

"Interesting proposal Lord Wong," the voice of Elder Cologne said, surprising Kasumi who hadn't noticed the Elder's arrival. "Am I correct to say that Ranma has become a true master of his art now? Even at his young age?"

"This man is now my equal in martial arts. And I've lived for thousands of years already. So yes, Ranma is worthy of the title of Best Martial Artist in the known galaxy now," Andy Wong said without hesitation.

"Very well then Ranma, I would like a duel with you to see your strength. Otherwise I'm afraid I'm going to make your Jedi Lord eat his own words," the Elder smirked at Ranma although she knew she was in for a hell of a fight now.

The pig-tailed martial artist grinned. "Bring it on, old ghoul," he said just as the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew, entered the Hall of Illusion.

To be continued.


	21. Chapter 18: The Horse and the Old Ghoul

**Author's note:**

Hi everyone, sorry for the extremely late update. Well, enough with the fillers and on with the story! I'm sure some of you are wondering what happened after Akane smashed her mallet at Ranma. Well, that will be another side story as I'm impatient to get on with the main story and coming war. I promise I'll get back to it. In fact, I did draft that chapter and then I also drafted this chapter at the same time. Somehow, this chapter finished first so I'll get on with the story first and come back with the lovey dovey stuff later. So without further ado I present to you

**Updated 3/9/2006 :** Inserted another chapter before this. This is the lovey dovey stuff. Hopefully it doesn't clash with anything in this chapter. If it does, please inform me. Thanks.

**Chapter 18: The Horse and the Old Ghoul**

_Our faith is our shield._

mantra of the Adeptus Astartes Space Marines and Jedi Lord Andy Wong's 1st Jedi Division Christian Daemon Hunters -

**Location: Hall of Illusion, Destiny's Forge, Imperial Star Destroyer Mark 2 Jedi Custom**

Ranma was standing in the middle of a dojo-like room that was twice larger than the Tendo Dojo. In front of him, was none other than his old nemesis and one-time mentor, Elder Kuh Lon or Cologne as she was better known to the Nerima Wrecking Crew. The old woman was dressed as she always was: hanging on her huge six foot staff and balancing it perfectly from the ground, a testament to her balance and skill. She was still dressed in her Chinese robes which on the front was embroidered the Amazon crest which resembled a Mercedes Benz.

The pig-tailed martial artist was dressed in his usual attire except instead of a red silk shirt, he wore a black one. He was barefooted.

"I see that your taste in colour has changed Ranma," Cologne remarked.

"Anybody who associates closely with Lord Wong will sooner or later dress in black. And it was a more suitable colour to wear in my past battles."

"Airen, please no fight great Elder. You going to get hurt bad," Shampoo pleaded from one end of the corner. She along with most of the Nerima Wrecking Crew were kneeling on the edge of the square. On her side was Akane and Ukyo, both of which were instructed by Lord Wong, to keep Shampoo in line should she try to interfere with the training. At Akane's side sat Kasumi and then Nabiki. On Ukyo's side sat the lost boy Ryoga and the erstwhile Amazon male, Mousse.

Hiding behind two huge Space Marines in full battle armour by the door of the Hall, were the dynamic duo, the eternal fountain of tears Tendo Soun and cowardly Saotome Genma. They still hadn't absorbed the idea that Ranma was a changed man and had from the start, assumed that Ranma would be getting it bad and chose to hide behind the Space Marines who were stationed at the side of the entrance to the Hall of Illusion.

Inside their armour, the Space Marines were having difficulty of how someone like Genma could produce someone like Ranma. It ran counter with their belief that the core of what a person is is due to his gene. After all, it was the geneseed that made the Space Marines strong since all of their genetic modification came from their Primarch's gene, the near godlike genetically engineered sons of the Emperor himself. Unless Genma was not really Ranma's father…… the two Space Marines grinned with glee as the lack of blood ties to Ranma meant that Genma would be open game for the entire ship full of Jedi. Brother Tanthias made it a point to _obtain _a blood sample from Saotome Genma later for Yoruichi to test.

The youngsters were sitting on the side of the square that was nearest to the door. On the opposite side of the wall, sat Jedi Lord Andy Wong, Captain Jaina Solo and Captain Cypher. Whereas the youngsters were kneeling on the side of the mat, the Lord and his captains were seated on simple wooden chairs. A stool was also provided for Saotome Nodoka to sit beside Captain Cypher, who stood on Andy Wong's right. She had come to observe her son and see how much he has improved in the last two years. Her concern for Ranma was not so much as doubting Ranma's ability but from newly awakened feelings of motherly concern. After all, she had lost her son for 15 years; she didn't want to loose him in something as simple as a practice session, especially a practice session with someone who was 300 years old with innumerable combat experience.

Beside Jaina, who sat at the Jedi Lord's left, were two empty chairs reserved for Ranma and Cologne.

The two combatants ignored Shampoo. For the first time, the two were duelling as equals, not as student and master. Gone was Ranma's gung ho arrogance and gone too was Elder Cologne's disregard for the pig-tailed youth's skills as simply blind luck in defeating her in the past. No, now it was time for the two equals, masters of their respective schools and more, to test each other. No more holding back, especially when there were Force Fields protecting the outsiders from the battle inside the square.

The rules were simple: fight until one was unconscious. The only other rule was no fire arms. Weapons had been allowed but Ranma chose to fight with his fists anyway whereas Cologne used her staff.

The Jedi Lord stood up from his chair. In a deep and loud voice, he simply said, "Begin."

It was then that Akane, Ukyo, Ryoga and Mousse really understood just how different Ranma was from them. If Ranma was a lion, the king of the feline kingdom, they were stray cats compared to his class in martial arts. The force field that was supposedly only activated when any projectile or person stepped beyond the boundary of the square was now continuously active due to the constant impacts on the force field made by Ranma or Cologne. And the worst part was they couldn't even see how exactly they were fighting as both were fighting at Amaguiriken speeds.

Strangely enough, the non-combatants Kasumi and Nabiki saw the fight more clearly then everyone else. Nabiki had trained herself to observe martial artists, even that of Cologne's and Happosai's level ever since Ranma came to Nerima. Kasumi however, revealed yet another talent hidden by years of household duties: being eagle eyed in watching fights. Nabiki shook her head, knowing that she could never use Ranma as a cash cow again, not after what she had been through. The Jedi Lord and Captains of course, had no problem keeping up with Cologne and Ranma.

In the square, the two masters, one of the Japanese Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts and the other from the Jusenkozu Chinese Amazon tribe fought ferociously, each seeking to knock out the other. The Chinese Amazon was shocked at not only Ranma's speed but his power, which even at Amaguriken speed maintained the power of full punches and kicks. And they were far more powerful than that of a normal human. His Chi control had also exceeded her expectations and now, the both of them were releasing their chi freely, no longer bothering to keep them in to hide their powers from the enemy. For now they were really doing everything in their power to defeat the other.

For Ranma, he was also pleasantly surprised that Cologne had taken the fight to a whole new different level. Before, Cologne had always relied on her staff and even then, he had thought that her hits were weak compared to normal martial artists and had written it off as due to old age. Her punches and hits were now as strong as his AFTER his departure from Nerima. Now he realised that she had also been holding back her full powers and wondered what would have happened if she had decided to force him to return to China. Now Ranma wasn't so arrogant to think he could have beaten Cologne from before, but he deduced that most likely they would have killed each other in the best of scenarios.

"Old ghoul, you cheater. How can you deceive me into thinking you were weaker than you are now and make me think so highly of myself?"

"Having an oversized ego is a part of you Ranma. Don't blame that on me. Its always you who underestimated me and I had to restrain myself utterly humiliating you with defeat. The only time you were more powerful than me to the point I had to fight like I do now was when you used the Neko Ken. Now that was a huge shock and I have no problem saying you became stronger than me then."

Ranma batted away her staff attacks with his fists and promptly started a complicated kata which, being a Saotome technique, was a purely midair attack.

"Speak not of the Neko Ken, it has made me do terrible things that I cannot speak of now. Damn Genma and his antiques. If he were not my father, he would be a bloody pulp since the day I came back. MOKO TAKABISHA!" he shouted as a huge blast of pure destructive chi erupted from his punch."

"Hiyru Shoten Ha!" Cologne shouted to Ranma's surprise as his chi-blast was reversed into a blazing tornado thrown back at him. Fortunately his hadn't focused a lot of chi into the blast, merely enough to knock Cologne of her feet, not kill her so the tornado, which was now straining the Force fields holding the battle within the square, was only the size of a tree. Nodoka cried out as the tornado hit Ranma.

Ranma couldn't dodge the tornado and so decided to literally dig himself into the floor. He put his palms together, focused much of his chi into his hands and said, "Fists of the Tiger, Neko Ken revised." He then spread his arms into the air, and Kasumi and Nabiki were shocked to see 50 cm claws of chi sprouting out of his nails, which he brought down to the floor and dug himself into the floor just as the tornado hit him. Despite the force of the tornado, Ranma's chi-claws dug into the ground prevented him from being thrown around by the chaotic maelstrom.

Cologne waited for the tornado to subside and was astonished at Ranma's extraordinary technique. The last time he made chi claws was when he was under the influence of the Neko Ken. She wasn't the only one as the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew was similarly shocked and could see no signs of anything feline in the room to induce Ranma into a rampaging cat monster. The moment of surprise evaporated when Ranma _removed _his chi claws and propelled himself at Cologne. Cologne was about to prepare her defence against Ranma's punches but was again surprised as Ranma started forming hand seals instead of a kata.

"Katon, Gokyaku no jutsu," he thought as the chi accumulated in his chest and lungs, came out in a breath of fire.

"Suiton, seijuiheki," Cologne commanded as she moulded her chi to suck in every bit of moisture in the dojo but mostly from her own body, to form a water wall around her. As the fire struck the water wall, a huge cloud of steam covered the entire square, resulting in zero visibility to the observers outside. Inside, the two opponents stood completely still, getting used to the fact that now they could only **_see_** each other through chi and sound as the heavily moist air now stifled their scents.

"I don't believe this, Ranma expects us to become like that in five years?" Akane thought out aloud as she recalled Ranma's remark earlier.

"Don't worry Akane, I'm sure Ranma has a plan. Anyway, we can always be specialists which will take a shorter time to train as opposed to Ranma who is very well rounded from every school of martial arts he has been to," Kasumi said.

Nabiki shook her head, "That Saotome is insane, no way can we be like that, especially in a short period of time."

"Oh my, Cologne's has scored a hit," Kasumi said as they heard a large smacking sound that sounded without a doubt, like wood hitting bone.

Inside Cologne had finally landed a solid hit to Ranma's shoulder. The old Ghoul managed to duplicate her chi and focused in on a spot where she was standing, **_marking _**the spot with a temporary beacon of chi. She then massively flared her chi, as though in preparation of a chi blast and then quickly moved away from the spot, whereby she immediately cooled her chi while the place where she previously stood still bore a strong signature of chi. In essence, it was chi decoy which deceived Ranma as he charged into where Cologne stood only moments before only to find nothing there. It was then that Cologne managed to make out Ranma's tall silhouette and strike Ranma's shoulder with all of her might, intending break an arm at least.

Fortunately Ranma's conditioning had also improved, although nowhere as tough as Cypher's Space Marines or even Ryoga who by that point, could shrug off slug weaponry with ease. It did hurt him though and he reflexively drew into a defensive stance which Cologne pressed until Ranma's back was pressed against the Force Field wall.

"Wong's School of Martial Arts, No Shadow Kick!" Ranma in order to heal the injury in his arm, launched the kicking version of Kachu Tenchin Amaguriken. His speed was slightly lower than his punching version but it had much more power and Cologne also made a mistake of underestimating the kicks, which sent her retreating under a devastating barrage of kicks. She was astonished because she was aware that this technique had its roots in the Shaolin Temple School. Her mind travelled to the Jedi Lord and the other five Captains.

She sighed inwardly. _Bravo Ranma, you truly deserve these true friends after what we all put you through._

His arm healed of its bruise, Ranma and Cologne resumed their furious fight with hands, feet and staff.

The fight prolonged for 10 minutes until Ranma and Cologne finally stopped. Akane thought that perhaps Cologne had finally run out of energy due to her old age but Ranma was also perspiring profusely. The two now merely circled each other, probing each other's reaction.

_This is really going to take forever, _Ranma thought as he continued to assess Cologne for any weaknesses. _She really is a great Elder of the Amazon tribe. Would Shampoo be as good as this if she trained like her for a hundred years?_

"Ranma, maybe its time for you to give up," Cologne remarked.

"No way old ghoul. The purpose of this fight is to test our limits right?" Ranma scoffed.

"Suit yourself **_son in law_**," the Elder than pounced on Ranma with her staff.

_Here we go again, _he thought before running to meet Cologne's attack. The two once more began a dance of death that this time, lasted more than two hours. Kasumi and Nabiki were still watching the fight intensely but the other lesser martial artists were beginning to feel bored as all they were really seeing were blurs within the Force Field, so fast were Cologne and Ranma. Akane was the only one who from the start, was attentive and gradually her minds eye began to decipher the quick movements.

"Come on Ranma," she whispered.

In the end, it took another 3 hours before the two fighters finally couldn't fight anymore. Most of the Nerima Wrecking Crew sighed as they expected Ranma to pull off something unusual but somehow, everything Ranma threw at Cologne she managed to counter as well. The Tendo sisters noted however that during the rest of the fight, Ranma did not use his chi-claws again.

The great Elder felt an unfamiliar feeling that she had not felts since ascending to the post of Elder: exhaustion. Never had she been so fatigued by a fight, and by a boy, no man who was not even a third of her age. She had to admit, she had literally been pushed to her limits, and if Ranma had a little more energy than he did now, she would not have been able to stop him. She had long stopped pogoing with her staff and was not leaning against it, fighting just to stand up straight.

As for the pig-tailed man, he was astonished at the Elder's true colours finally revealed.. Fortunately he had grown a little wiser in the last fifteen years and did not see his inability to defeat Cologne as a severe drawback. In any case, beating her was not the objective of this fight.

The Jedi Lord rose from his seat again and in a firm voice said, "Enough. Pay your respects and return to your seats."

The two masters wearily moved to each other and bowed. That was when Cologne finally gave in and she fell to the floor, unable to stand any longer. But Ranma quickly held her small body and lifted her up gently. He then walked to the last vacant chair and sat her in it. Immediately Yoruichi came over with towels as well as a tray bearing two goblets of liquids that were smoking at the brim.

"Ranma, what I would give for you to become an Amazon. I would even make the males and females equal if it meant bringing you into the tribe," Cologne whispered as she leant back on her chair, thoroughly exhausted. Yoruichi wiped the perspiration of her face and as much as she could from Cologne's sweat drenched robes.

Ranma sat wearily in his chair and took a goblet of Yoruichi's tray. "The opportunity is lost Elder. And my Jedi Lord is a Christian so he frowns upon polygamy which means I shouldn't take Shampoo as a second wife even if I wanted to," he said as he took a sip of his drink.

"Elder, please drink this. It will restore your strength instantly," Yoruichi said as she grasped the goblet and lifted it to Cologne's lips.

Cologne's looked at Ranma who was slowly sipping his drink. Ranma looked back and said, "Its my special concoction. The thing is even with advanced technology it takes a whole night to brew and lasts only a day. It can't be preserved. I made it myself last night."

The Elder took a sip. It tasted like fructose to her astonishment and she felt a tingling in her body, as though her body was now rushing to replenish her now nearly empty chi reserves.

"Take it slowly Elder," Ranma said which Cologne promptly did, slowly enjoying the concoction.

The Jedi Lord was still standing until he saw that the two had gotten enough strength to listen to him. He then turned to Cypher. "And what think you of this fight?"

The Fallen Angel rose to his feet and addressed Cologne. "May I know Elder, how many in your village possess this skill?"

"Our Elder Council comprises of seven of the oldest and wisest of the Chinese Amazons. If I may say so, I am the most powerful of them all but the gap between each of us is small and as such, we can still be considered very much equal to each other."

Cypher's heart sank. "Only seven of you? Meaning there are six more Elders of perhaps equal power. What about your warriors? Your elite companies? I know this is secret information I'm asking but at the least, we must know your strength before we can aid you."

"Why? Will you abandon us if we are truly capable of fighting for ourselves?" Cologne said.

"Nothing of the sort. What I'm trying to say is that there are less than three thousand of Jedi Guards, and we must be prepared to allocate our people efficiently and effectively. But in a way, you are right. How powerful you are now will depend on the task force that we will organise to aid you. Remember, this is primarily your war, not ours," Cypher replied.

Cologne sighed, for she already knew she was asking too much for aid in the first place, especially when she hadn't even consulted the other Elders yet. But somehow, she trusted the Jedi completely. She silently prayed that she wasn't making the mistake of a lifetime to trust these mysterious warriors.

"Below the Elders is the Phoenix Corps. They are the best and the most military minded among our military, and are alone are trained in modern military tactics complete with fire arms. All they lack is age and experience that comes with the Elders. Most of them come from the family of the Elders, with few exceptions, since our families are privy to the best martial arts knowledge. They are the leaders and champions who will lead the other Cadres."

"And what is Shampoo's place in all this? I once heard someone say that she was the champion of the Amazon tribe," Ranma said.

"As far as **_normal _**martial artists are concerned, she is the best. You certainly weren't normal then although perhaps, a few notches above Shampoo's level. Right now of course, you outclass her by leaps and bounds. After winning her championship, Shampoo would have been inducted into the training cadres of the Flower Corps, which I will explain later."

"Below our Phoenix Corps are the Tiger Cadres. Most of our males belong to this category. They are our shock troops, and if I may say so, our expendable troops. As you know, being male is almost like a second class citizenship in our society, so there is little a male can do to elevate himself to a respectable position in Amazon society. The Tiger Cadres, despite their nature, are one of the few avenues which a Amazon male can at least, prove himself a powerful warrior and then seek to defeat one of our women to woo and marry. Mousse was a member of this branch before he deserted to follow Shampoo to Japan."

Akane looked at Mousse in amazement. "You were actually a soldier, not just a martial artist?"

"Of course. Why do you think I've been challenging for Shampoo's hand all along! That Ranma never held a gun in his life before, nor has he killed before. I should have defeated him but the old ghoul refused to let me use my guns," Mousse retorted.

"Shut up you fool, it wasn't because if your skill that I disrespected you. It was because you left the service of your country which is supposed to supercede your personal life. It's a good thing that we were in peaceful times when you left otherwise I would have executed you the moment you stepped foot in Nerima," Cologne said wearily.

"Enough of this bickering, Mousse I will talk with you later," Andy Wong said sternly. "Please Elder, continue. Please tell us of the technology level as well as the martial arts level of your military."

"Forgive me Lord Wong. The Phoenix Corps are equipped with the best today's technology can offer, mostly imported firearms and munitions from America. You won't believe how easy it is to get weapons from America. Their primary weapon is the double edged Chinese '_jien' _sword, with American issued Desert Eagles as a standard pistol for them. They prefer it due to its power since they are a primarily close combat Corp of soldiers. We also have our own armour, made with techniques handed down from our ancestors and improved until today. I won't divulge the secret but suffice to say, our armour is superior to current Kevlar jackets."

Lord Wong whistled. "May I presume that it is made up of silkworm?"

Cologne merely shrugged. "Maybe. In addition they are also issued with a carbines and grenades. To summarise they are as well armed as an American Navy SEAL operative. The Phoenix Corps martial arts level is such that their KNOWLEDGE of the Amazon techniques is nearly equal to the Amazons. All that I've done today, the Phoenix Corps can do, except with a former scale. The Hiryu Shoten Ha for example, not all of them have the power to do it and the Shi Shi Hokodan used by Ryoga, most can't make a blast as powerful as Ryoga."

"Now we come to the Tiger Corps. They are diverse bunches comprised of Amazon males who carry basically any weapon they want. From sling shots to the M-16 that Mousse uses when he is not using his duck shaped potty as a throwing projectile. But they serve their purpose and most of the time the enemy who intrudes in our territory will laugh at our seemingly primitive technology before being caught with their pants down by the Phoenix Corps and our more properly trained Flower Corps. Their martial arts level is more or less consistent with what Mousse, Ryoga and Shampoo has been displaying till now: normal martial artists but with no particularly powerful techniques."

"The Flower Corps is where the true warriors of the Amazon tribe dwell. Shampoo was supposed to join them if it hadn't been for Ranma's untimely appearance at the finale of her tournament. Here is where their chi and magical training begins, if any have talent in these areas. Yes, we do have knowledge of magic. How else could we have harnessed the power of Jusenkyo in the past? This is where we Elders all have a responsibility to train them up since their entry. We groom them to have the capacity to perform powerful techniques, and then we survey the Flower Corps for potential candidates into the Phoenix Corps. They are in fact, our base troops, to put in American terms, **_ground pounders_**," she said.

"Impressive. Crude but efficient enough for your society," Cypher commented.

"As you say. Of course the rest of the village, male or female are taught how to fight before they walk or talk. Amazon women who wish for the status of a full fledged Amazon warrior must join the Flower Corps and as such, go through a yearly tournament where the top five are inducted in the Flower Corps. Hair Do, the butch Amazon that Shampoo defeated when Ranma came along, entered the Flower Corps and is now in the running to enter the Phoenix Corps due to her strength and some latent magic talent."

Ranma's eyes widened. "That butch man like girl? Wow, I guess I'm glad I didn't disrupt her life as I did to Shampoo. Sorry Shampoo," he hastily added when he saw Shampoo being downcast.

"We can discuss that another time. In any case, technologically, the Flower Corps are equipped like any other modern military force."

"These are our three main military branches. The Phoenix Corps, which are our elite guard as well as the Commanders of the other three cadres: Tiger Cadre and Flower Corps. Outside of these are two more which comes under the direct command of the Elder Council: the Eagle Sentries and Heaven Guardians. The Eagle Sentries are essentially our scouts and diplomats. They are the ones who normally deal with outsiders as well as guard our territories from intruders. The only reason Ranma and his father entered our territory that fateful day is due to the Jusenkyo Guide who is an honorary member of the Eagles due to him saving the life of one of their own before. They are the eyes and ears of the Amazon tribe. You could say that they are also our spies and assassins. They're firearms mostly consists of sniper rifles and are mostly trained as scouts and infiltrators."

"The Heaven Guardians are our magic users. They are the Amazons who are the most potent in magical and chi techniques yet prefer the scholarly life rather than the way of the warrior. It is not encouraged and the Heaven Guardians still have to be a Flower Warriors before they are selected. They are the intellectuals, our Research and Development, the ultimate ward against magical foes. Only the Elders are above them in magic and chi power. The downside is that they don't receive the technology that is privy to the Phoenix Corps, who are trained to use gun, sword, chi and magic. They are pure magic and chi users, which doesn't really balance against normal troops. They are the ones who maintain, expand and guard the 5,000 years of Jusenkyo knowledge. They are the most knowledgeable of the powers of Chaos," she finished.

Ranma could only stare at the description of the Amazon military structure. Was this really the same primitive village that he and his pop had stumbled upon? What was Genma doing, simply bringing him to an ancient powerful kingdom to insult and make enemies of them?

"OOOOOYYYYYAAAAJJJJJIIII!" Ranma shouted in anger just as Genma, who was fiddling with the door controls in order to escape, froze and promptly produced a thermos, splashed himself with cold water and then held up a sign which said: I'm a cute panda. I'm an endangered species. Please don't harm me.

The sign didn't perturb a similarly angered blue haired girl who once again materialised a hammer made of chi. "PANDA NO BAKA!" she cried as she swung an overhead swing at the panda, smashing its head to the ground.

"Now that, he truly deserved. Yes Ranma, you have no idea how close you and your dad came to death that day. If not for Shampoo's insistence that she hunt you down alone as well as the Jusenkyo Guide accompanying you, the Sentries would have shot you before you had the chance to escape our borders," Cologne remarked.

The Jedi Lord sighed. "Shampoo, Tendo sisters, Hibiki Ryoga, Kuonji Ukyo and Mu Tzu. This message applies to all of you. Your training has already begun. I will no longer tolerate any childish interruptions from now on. All of you are young adults already. Its time to start acting your age. Your world is about to face an enemy of epic proportions and you still want to fight with each other over something as petty as Ranma? No offence Ranma. If you do not conform to our military discipline, we'll gladly drop you back into Earth right now. Is that understood," the Jedi Lord glared at the fiancée brigade as well as their male love rival counterparts. His cold stare was enough to penetrate even Shampoo's skull and all of them nodded.

"If I may ask, what sort of forces were stationed at the Amazon outpost that was destroyed recently?" Captain Jaina asked.

"There were no Flower Corps at the outposts. The outpost villages are mostly populated by the Eagle Sentries. What puzzles me is how they could have attacked the village so easily as the Eagle Sentries should have been able to smell them from miles away of the Amazon border," Cologne said.

"From what I surmised from the site, Happosai managed to sneak in dark cultists who summoned the Bloodletter from inside the outpost first. Your sentries didn't have a chance against a Bloodletter in close combat. After which the Musk warriors descended upon the outpost and enslaved anyone the Bloodletter didn't kill," Andy said.

"An inside job? Traitors?" Cologne hissed.

"I do not know. The taint of Chaos is elusive and always appears when you least expect it. That is why we must come to your village soon. I won't say the Jedi Guard are incorruptible, we're only mortals after all, but I can say that we are all trustworthy. Anyway we will leave that for later. From what I surmise, your military is adequately organised against any modern incursion into your territory. Note, when I say modern, I mean according to this Earth's level of technology. Against the force of Chaos however, I fear that your forces are lacking the training and education needed to face against these horrors. Its not just a simple matter of fighting the Chaos demons. It's the understanding of what will happen if they fail: the cost will be their soul, especially if it is a demon of Slaneesh. Am I right to say that only the Elder Council and Heaven Guardians have the proper knowledge to deal with demons? The Elders we know number seven, including yourself. What of the Heaven Guardians?" Andy asked.

"About fifty," Cologne replied.

"Fifty. Completely inadequate. And how is it the knowledge of demons is passed down to the Phoenix, Flowers and Tigers?"

Cologne looked uncomfortable. "To tell you the truth, the last time we dealt with anything demonic was over 293 years ago. As I said, I was still a child then. For awhile we trained only the Phoenix Corps to deal with demons but over the years, the anti-demon discipline has eroded to the point that it is more of a textbook subject in their training rather than something they have to seriously train for. I tried to uphold it but the other Elders, who are all younger than me and can't remember the demon invasion, chose to focus more on conventional warefare."

"So based on your experience, if the Phoenix Corps were to engage Chaos demons now…" Jaina started.

"…. they would be killed," Cologne finished with a sigh as her worries increased tenfold.

"Do not give up hold Elder. Strangely enough, we have a large window of time before they make their next offensive. Time enough to bolster your defences and find out how, where and when the enemy will move," Andy Wong said.

Nabiki held up her hand which caught the eye of Cypher. "Yes Nabiki?" he asked.

"Please, I do not wish to doubt you but how can we be ready on time? How will we find the time to train to become like Ranma? Maybe Akane who has been practising since she was young has the physical composition to do it but Kasumi and I haven't practised a kata in years, not since….," she hesitated as another set of painful memories came.

"Not since mother died and daddy stopped teaching," Kasumi finished quietly which promptly activated a certain human water fountain.

"Oh Kimiko, Kimiko, why did you have to leave us," the old man wailed to everyone's disgust.

"Tendo Soun, I invited you and your friend because I thought you would be able to give some input on our plans. If all you are going to do is cry and hide, than you are of no use here. Space Marines, remove Tendo Soun and Saotome Genma from the room," the Jedi Lord ordered.

The Panda had awaken to hear the last bit about being ordered out and promptly wrote on the sign: _how dare you separate a father from his son? I am his father and master of the Saotome School of Martial arts. You have no right to teach him without my leave. I demand that you return Ranma to me and we will go back to marry Akane and Ranma._

This finally broke the proverbial camel's back as far as Space Marines patience were concerned. They were the Emperor's finest but they also had zero tolerance of those who sullied the honour of their leaders. With a battle cry, "REPENT FOR TOMORROW YOU DIE!" the two Space Marines started beating Genma in his Panda form, who was more interested in escaping than of fighting back.

"BROTHER TANTIAS, BROTHER MALACHAI, RESTRAIN YOURSELVES!" Cypher roared just as one of the Space Marines was about to crush Genma's panda head underneath his armoured boot.

"For your disregard of Andy Wong's command, you are hereby sentenced to a week of solitary confinement. Report to Vice-Captain Ardias immediately!" Cypher shouted.

The two Space Marines stopped their battering of Genma, who was now a bloody and furry pulp on the floor. The signs he usually held only said, "oooooouuuuu…." The two Space Marines bowed and then exited the room, but not before dragging Tendo Soun out as well.

"Yoruichi…" Ranma started to say but she was already one step ahead, moving swiftly and picking up the furry mess that was Genma.

"Understood Taichou, I will deposit him in Medlab first," she said before exiting.

"Any more distractions?" this time Andy's gaze was directed at Saotome Nodoka. Fortunately the Saotome matriarch had managed to grasp that perhaps now was not the time to ask why Ranma did not take Yoruichi as a mistress, which showed how much more intelligent she was than Genma. She promptly shook her head, deciding that apart from motherly love, any discussion regarding Ranma's marital status could wait.

"No Lord. Please continue," she said politely.

"Thank you. To answer your question Nabiki, we have a way to slow down time long enough for us to train you girls. I won't go into details but this is how we managed to train the Jedi Guard during our previous war. By slowing down time long enough for us to be stronger, we managed to create a fighting force that rivals any alien civilisation. But this technique is not a battle technique, and can only be done on this ship. With this technique, we can make one day in real time seem like a month to you. This way we will be able to train you adequately with little time passing by in the real world. This will be essential and even then, we must move quickly."

Kasumi's eyes widened. "Does this mean we'll get older faster? That in one day, we'll actually emerge one month older?"

Andy Wong gave a broad smile. "The beauty of this technique, bless Jedi Lord Kira Yamato may his soul rest in peace, is that physically your body only ages in proportion to the real time yet your body conditioning improves in tandem with training. So your getting a lot of training without having to get more wrinkles."

Nabiki heaved a sigh. She was really worried about spending a year training and emerge out one year later when only twelve days had passed.

Ryoga slapped his right fist against his palm. "So, if I may ask, when will our training start? We've been talking for too long already. Nows the time for action. I'm dying to get back at the bastards who tore up Nerima. And Ranma, I believe you still owe me a duel!"

Ranma was worried that his friend was going to get it from the Jedi Lord but to his surprise, Andy smiled. "Peace Hibiki Ryoga. Remember the fate of the world is at stake, not just your desire to fight."

The fanged boy realised that he was being disrespectful and quickly bowed and kept quiet.

"Cologne, we will schedule a few hour of rest for you then Captain Neji, Captain Hitsugaya and Captain Jaina will liase with you to help bolster your nation's defences. For now, we promise training and knowledge to your nation on how to defeat the forces of Chaos. You can negotiate for technology with them," Andy said to Cologne.

"I take it you, Ranma and Cypher will train the youngsters?"

"Yes. Be prepared the next time you see them Cologne. Pray that they survive the ordeal. We will make them see hell by the time their training is over. I pray that they're hears and minds remain good by the end of it."

Cologne asked, "If not?"

"I will execute them," the Jedi Lord said with dead seriousness.

To be continued

**Author's note:**

Katon Gojyaju No Jutsu: Fire element, Great Firebal technique (Sasuke's signature technique)

Suiton Suijiheki: Water element, Water Wall/Shield (high leter water jutsu used by Second Hokage and also by Hatake Kakashi)

Coming soon, Team Ranma will be formed and need to find out who is the mysterious alien that resides in Japan? Why is the alien on the planet? How is Happosai going to find it? And will the Ranma survive Akane's enhanced mallet? Find out in the next chapter.

Once again, thank you all for reading until now. Reviews as always, is very much appreciated.

Until the next time, good night and God bless all of you.


	22. Chapter 19: The Breaking of Ryoga

**Author's note**

Well reviews have been pretty sparse. I guess having massive crossovers wasn't a good idea in the first place. Or maybe because it's a Ranma + Akane fic. Or maybe its because I've got my own character in it. Or maybe I just plain suck in my writing. But personally, I like my story and so I'll continue to forge through (pardon the pun) Ranma's destiny. And give a little love to Kasumi as well, the least credited character in Ranma. To PPM Katie, Jerry Unipeg (despite your 5 sentence reviews) and Dragonman, I thank you for your consistent reviews. Last but not least, Sithknight galen for your great insightful review, I thank you.

I'll lay some groundwork for what's happening to Ryoga and Ukyo before touching on the Tendo sisters or moving on to the Onegai Sensei crossover.

**Disclaimer**

I don't own Ranma ½, Bleach, Naruto, Warhammer 40,000, Onegai Sensei, Mai Hime and Star Wars. They belong to their respective owners and I'm just borrowing their characters and technology for the purpose of my fan fiction, which is free and for all to enjoy.

**Chapter 19: The Breaking of Ryoga**

Ryoga was not a happy man. This was not especially atypical of him, in fact, most of his life was characterised by deep depression and a firm belief, until very recently, that the underlying cause of all his trouble was a certain pig-tailed martial artist called Ranma. He was currently sitting in a lotus position on the floor, trying to clear his mind of everything. Which was pretty much all he had been doing for three days now. This was the third day and he had managed to sit on the same spot for the better parts of five hours. Once again, he became very unhappy that instead of learning new martial arts techniques, all he had been doing is sitting on his butt, and not even allowed to think happy thoughts.

A cane whacked the back of his head, making him cry out in spite of himself. "Oww, what was that for?" he shouted as his instructor.

"Keep your mind focused and don't think of anything else. You chi aura still stands out like a nuclear explosion. You've got to keep your emotions in check or else everybody who can read chi will know you are there." Yoruichi was standing right in front of him and Ryoga felt his nose starting to bleed. She was clad in only a sports bra and long form fitting spandex pants which accentuated her beautiful body perfectly. Despite Ryoga regarding himself as loyal to Akane only, he couldn't still his desire to have a romp with Yoruichi.

This thought promptly resulted in another whack of a long reed cane that Yoruichi held in her left hand.

"OOOOWWWW! I'm trying OK?! Come on, why can't you train me in something else rather than focus on my emotions? I am what I am and nothing is going to change that I'm a depressed person and that my depression is my greatest weapon! So what's the use of making me into something I'm not?" Ryoga stood up and shouted.

Yoruichi regarded him calmly and asked him, "Tell me, is it Ranma's nature to avoid fights and challenges? Because that's exactly what he's been doing in the past 15 years as a healer."

"Even Ranma is different. He could always do anything, no matter how humiliating it was, from dressing up as a cocktail waitress to being a school girl. That's his strength, his adaptability. I'M NOT RANMA!"

"If that's your attitude, you sure as hell will remain out of Ranma's league forever."

"So why can't you teach me some devastating techniques instead? Are you planning to make me into a doctor like you did Ranma?"

Yoruichi's eyes narrowed. "Nobody made Ranma into a doctor. Both of us chose to be healers around the same time. Haven't you always wondered how come we're healers when in reality, our close combat abilities should have made us into leading the assault divisions, Cypher's division?"

"No, why was it that way?" Ryoga asked, always curious about Ranma's life in the military.

"That is a story you will have to hear from Ranma. Suffice to say he CHOSE to be a healer although every part of his body begged for him to be in the assault division where he can bash all the skulls he wants. As for me, I could have gone into the assault division or even Jaina's Justice Squadron starfighters. But I also chose to be a healer and became extremely proficient in it. So stuff your "**_I can't change" _**attitude because that's just bullshit. You can be anyone you want as long as you put your heart to it. And right now, I want you to conquer that silly temper of yours first before we teach you anything."

Yoruichi face suddenly closed in right in front of Ryoga's face until their nose was almost touching. Ryoga nearly blushed at the close proximity before Yoruichi said, "Do you want your head cut off and stuck in a pike while the rest of your body rots below the pike? Because that's what's going to happen should you misuse the gifts that we bestow on you, whether its chi techniques, magical techniques, advance technology or martial arts techniques."

Ryoga gulped. "I thought Jedi aren't supposed to be vengeful."

"Oh there is only one person on this ship who does that, and its our Jedi Lord. Do you know that once upon a time, his name was so greatly feared that he was known in many alien tongues as **_The Lord Of Terror_**?**"**

"That's impossible, how can he be so violent yet so benevolent at the same time?" Ryoga asked, thoroughly confused.

Yoruichi sighed. "Our Lord has a very strict code of honour. Within his honour, there are certain crimes where he will show absolutely no mercy. In the Original Jedi Code, we call these the **_Unforgivable Deeds_**. Any Jedi who commits those deeds is supposed to be instantly executed by his Division Captain.."

"But most of the time, we don't simply kill the traitor. We report them to our Captains and from them to the Jedi Lord. And the Jedi Lord will personally execute them himself. The reason he is the Lord of Terror is due to the horrifically quick methods of death he deals out, the most common being beheadings."

"Oh God, but doesn't that make him an unstable person, to be so violent?" Ryoga asked.

"There's a reason why the Unforgivable Deeds are called as such. I won't go into detail but rape is one of them. It is a crime so heinous in the Lord's eyes, the defiling of a woman (or man, it happens many times) against their will, for the act of sex is a sacred act to Lord Andy Wong. Rape is a defilement of another's soul that can take an eternity to cleanse. Needless to say, crimes that result in a victim being scarred for life qualify as an Unforgivable Deed. And for a Jedi to do one of the Deeds, is the ultimate act of treachery and the Jedi Lord will set a terrible example once that Jedi has been caught, as an example to future generations."

Ryoga gulped as he imagined his head on a pike. "Why does he do all the executions? Surely you are responsible for your own divisions?"

Yoruichi looked sad. "The Lord Wong prefers to take the sin of meting out the punishment himself, to absolve us the agony of executing the fiends in such a violent manner. In the case of Fallen Jedi, though the Jedi may come from my division for example, the Jedi's failure to honour the Jedi Code is seen in the Lord's eyes as his failure, not Ranma's. And so he will personally…. correct his mistake."

"Alright alright. I think I heard enough about Andy Wong to know I have to take seriously this whole meditation business. But seriously, this isn't working out so far. Isn't it possible to get some other way to train my emotions other than meditation?"

"No, you must learn meditation. Or you take up the Christian faith and immerse yourself in prayer as it is the same thing. I'm sorry but I cannot teach you any techniques until then.

Ryoga sighed then promptly sat cross legged again. "OK OK, I'll keep trying. But please, at least get another expert opinion if it doesn't work out? There's gotta be a way I can keep up with Ranma one day."

"Very well, we'll give it another day. Then I will ask advice from the other vice captains. But no matter what the method, your depression has to go. And that means no more Shi Shi Hokodan. Trust me, conquer it and we will teach you better techniques than it, one that won't ruin your very being."

The thought of learning more power techniques promptly strengthened Ryoga's resolve to master his emotions.

The rest of the day went much better than usual and in the end, Ryoga found that he liked being in a peaceful place, where he was actually knew where he was and had no chance of getting lost. Especially when everybody seemed to be looking out of him, giving him a sense of security he never felt all of his life. His feeling of peace was jolted by another whack by the reed cane. It was amazing how Yoruichi could wield the reed cane to inflict extreme pain yet harm the target physically at all. It made Ryoga wonder whether she applied the reed cane in her sex life….

This time, the thought was not punished by the cane but a full punch in his face, propelling Ryoga into the air and crashing him into the opposite wall. The impact on the wall didn't hurt much but the punch was as powerful as Ranma's.

"DAMN IT, WERE YOU ACTUALLY READING MY MIND! YOU GOT NO RIGHT TO READ MY MIND!" Ryoga shouted, now thoroughly pissed off. That does it, he wasn't going to take anymore shit from Yoruichi not after sitting on his butt and doing nothing but being rewarded by caning from a sadistic bitch…

… at that thought, her bare left foot met his face and he was slammed to the wall by her leg.

"My dear Ryoga, do you know that every single time you think dirty, your nose bleeds like Niagara Falls? That's what's been happening three times already in the last 5 minutes!"

Ryoga was shocked. "IBD DAS?" (It has?)

She put down her foot and Ryoga slumped to the floor. The lost boy poked a finger in his nose and it came out wet and bloody. "Oh man, do I have to go through this every time? I can't help it you know."

"Yes you can. Only losers say they can't change. Now shut up and go back to the middle of the square and stand there."

Ryoga groaned. "Oh no, not again? Look can't we spar or something?"

"Just go before I post a recommendation my Captain that for you to be sent back to Earth," Yoruichi snarled.

"OK, no need to get to angry," Ryoga said defensively, as he was beginning to feel killer intent from the beautiful vice-captain. He nervously walked to the middle of the square. With his back to Yoruichi, he heard some clothes rustling as well as something dropping to the floor.

No sooner had he reached the square's middle, Yoruichi's voice shouted "Catch!" and Ryoga swiftly turned around…..

…. to behold Yoruichi gloriously naked and rushing towards him with killer intent in her eyes. '_Wait a minute, SHE WANTS TO KILL ME!' _his mind dimly registered before the sports bra she had thrown to him covered his face and a punch that felt like a hundred bricks hit his gut, knocking the wind out of him. He doubled over and Yoruichi wasted no time punching him down into the ground.

The pig boy managed to have the sense to roll away from Yoruichi but he didn't quite miss her kick at his downed body, the kick making him roll away further and faster than he intended. He barely managed to remove the sports bra away from his face to behold Yoruichi's naked body flying in the air, giving him a full view of her pussy even as her knee descended on his face.

Normally this sort of kick would have smashed or seriously cracked the cranium of any normal homo sapient but Ryoga was not like anybody. Yoruichi did not think it was possible but Ryoga's bone density nearly rivalled the Cypher's Space Marines. One of the genetic implants Space Marines had was known as the Ossmodula, which secreted hormones which effected epiphesial fusion and ossification of the skeleton. At the same time, it allowed the creation of hormones that encouraged forming bones to absorb ceramic based chemicals administered into a Space Marines diet. Over two years, it would cause the bone structure of a Space Marine to strengthen considerably, as well as cause his rib cage to form a solid mass of interlaced bone plates as well as a general increase in the bone structure.

But Yoruichi had done some extensive medical tests and research on Ryoga while he was incapacitated by his overuse of the Shi Shi Hokodan and what she found was mind boggling. While Ryoga was the same size of any average human, his muscle and bone density was immense, effectively the muscles of four humans concentrated into one body. Needless to say it made him incredibly strong to the point that lifting an eighty kilogram iron umbrella was nothing to him. It also explained why the Musk bullets that hit him did not penetrate far into the flesh. And if his dense flesh wasn't enough to stop the bullets, his bones did. Like the Space Marines, his bone density was immense and only lacked the ceramic based chemicals that would make his skeleton effectively bullet proof. Ryoga's weight as it turned out, was a hundred and forty eight kilograms, which was twice the weight of Ranma and it was all due to his muscle mass and bone density.

This had been Yoruichi's mistake when she had first met Ryoga. Ryoga had thrust his umbrella at her when she stopped him from entering the Tendo Dojo. She had foolishly decided to take the blow head on as she too, was far stronger in constitution than any normal human and could take a punch from a professional boxer without blinking an eye ordinarily. But Ryoga's strength, to put it mildly was insane and the force of it had not only hit her like a ton of bricks but succeeded in knocking out the wind in her, giving him enough time to launch the Shi Shi Hokodan attack which hit her with enough force to her through the wall of the Tendo residence.

Despite Ryoga's healthy bones and muscles, which appeared to be a genetic part of his DNA, the rest of his body had been failing by the time Yoruichi got him into the shuttle's medical bay. His heart rate was extremely high yet his blood pressure was surprisingly low. This contradiction appeared to be due to the low volume of blood that was being produced in Ryoga's body and it made him hyperactive yet lethargic at the same time. His stress levels also went up through the roof and there was excess of hormones that were released when stressed. These hormones were somewhat mutated from a normal human's and it actually stimulated the health of Ryoga's bone and muscle in place of a nutritional diet, which Ryoga had NOT been having for many days, if not weeks according to Yoruichi's diagnosis. Without nutritional foods, Ryoga was breaking down despite his strength being maintained and his immune system was non-existent. It took four days of rest as well as the equivalent nearly two hundred kilograms of healthy vegetable juices inserted directly into Ryoga's body via IV tubes before Ryoga's body stabilised and Yoruichi finally brought him back to consciousness.

_This guy is really built like a Space Marine. Too bad we don't have the know how on how to make one, _Yoruichi thought as she stood up to step on Ryoga's crotch.

Ryoga's face was a bloody mess but despite that, nothing was deterring him from the glorious view that was Yoruichi. Even in this situation, Ryoga felt a certain part of his anatomy was beginning to stiffen.

_Ooi Ryoga, she's trying to render you impotent! MOVE DAMN IT!" _a small part of his mind dimly shouted at him. It was still too dim however as he was too busy enjoying the view before pain exploded into his entire body as his prized part of his body met Yoruichi's bare foot descending at full force.

Yoruichi was becoming more infuriated at Ryoga's ineptness even in the face of imminent injury. She encountered beings who sold their souls to the chaos god Slaneesh for one moment of ultimate pleasure before resigning to the eternal torment of **_She Who Thirsts_**. She had also faced the daemonettes of Slaneesh before, hauntingly beautiful female demons who could seduce entire regiments of soldiers into submission before tearing them apart with their razor sharp claws. While the servants of Slaneesh were capable of seducing anyone, regardless of sex or race, she had always had a sound and logical mind which could differentiate the stupidity of getting seduced by such creatures in return of a temporary moment of pleasure. And now, it seemed as though Ryoga was heading down the path as those idiot soldiers she had seen get slaughtered. Not a good idea when the demons most likely to be faced would be those same daemonettes given that Happosai worshipped Slaneesh.

She proceeded to beat Ryoga's body into a pulp for ten minutes but all the while the pig-boy could only smile and gaze stupidly at her everytime he looked at her. He couldn't do anything, not even muster a simple defence, so completely was he absorbed in his lust. In the end, exasperated she picked up Ryoga's body with both hands and threw him into the same spot on the wall. This didn't hurt him but he was still reeling from the pain of his crushed penis.

_If this fails, I hope you'll forgive me Ranma, _Yoruichi thought.

"HIBIKI RYOGA, THE NEXT ONE IS GOING TO WIPE YOU OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH! IF YOU DON'T DODGE THIS, THEN SERVES YOU RIGHT!" Yoruichi roared as she ran towards Ryoga. This time, she had accumulated enough chi into her left hand which would translate into power the moment she thrust her punch. And that punch was heading right for Ryoga's head.

The pig boy barely registered the fast approaching form of Shihouin Yoruichi. _Oh man, what I would do to fuck that babe! Look at her breasts, they're so nice and big…._

_'HELLO! SHE'S GOING TO KILL YOU!' _a little part of his mind screamed but to Ryoga, it was like a small buzzing of a fly.

_... that thin slender waste and long legs that would put Shampoo to shame. Oh, and she doesn't shave her…._

_'CONCIENCE TO RYOGA! THINKING ISN'T GOING TO GRANT YOUR WISH! SHE'S NOT GOING TO FUCKING FUCK YOU AFTER SHE KILLS YOU!' _the voice in his mind was still dim although loud enough for Ryoga to barely register it as a thought in his mind.

_….. her tits are so huge, makes me wanna cry mama…._

_'OH JESUS, WHY DID I EXIST! WHO PUT ME HERE IN THIS BRAINLESS IDIOT IF HE'S NEVER GOING TO USE ME! RYOGA I DON'T WANNA DIE!' _the voice of his conscious wailed.

_…. milk and more milk. And perhaps a dash of her juice …… _Ryoga thought dreamily as he continued to stare at the naked Yoruichi fast approaching with her left hand pulled back, glowing with blue chi accumulated to make a punch powerful enough to crack Ryoga's skull literally, bone mutation or not.

_'THAT'S IT, MIGHT AS WAY PRAY NOW. THERE'S THE END OF EVERYTHING. GOD WHY DIDN'T I TELL AKANE I LOVE HER WHEN I HAD THE CHANCE! LORD JESUS, PLEASE FORGIVE ME……' _

_AKANE! _This was the only word that he could make out from the dim buzzing that was his conscience and sanity. And it was enough to make him realise that a fist was currently ten centimetres away from his face and his rudimentary chi abilities registered that it had enough power to punch through solid steel. With a scream of horror and fear borne of imminent death, he did the first sane thing since Yoruichi decided to fight him in the nude.

He ducked.

The **_Fist of Fury_**, a relatively basic martial art tactic that used chi to augment one's strength in a particular part of one's body, missed Ryoga's skull only just but practically shaved Ryoga's hair down the centre. The fist clean penetrated the wall and half of Yoruichi's arm went into the wall, leaving a petrified Ryoga whose hair was singed from the power of Yoruichi's chi right underneath the arm, staring this time at Yoruichi's face, not her body despite her breasts being only a hair's breath away from his face. At the moment, all of his attention was there and he felt fear of the cold fury that was evident in her face penetrate his entire body.

For a few moments, they remained that way. After awhile, Yoruichi's face broke into a smile which Ryoga somehow misinterpreted as an evil one.

"Please don't kill me," Ryoga whispered. He couldn't believe it. A woman had reduced him to begging for mercy. Even as he thought this, his depression was about to make a comeback.

Yoruichi pulled her arm out of the wall and knelt in front of him. "It's alright Ryoga. I'm not going to kill you. Congratulations, you've just passed the first step towards matching up to Ranma."

"But you beat me. Not once but twice. The first with a flick of a finger and the second… all because you were naked my mind ceased to think. What kind of martial artists am I," Ryoga said gloomily.

"Merely the kind that didn't have a proper master. Face it Ryoga, like Ranma you didn't have the proper guidance for a significant part of your life. You are luckier than you know having Ranma as a friend because I'm going to damn well make sure now that you can give my Captain a good fight when next you meet him," Yoruichi declared.

Ryoga stared at Yoruichi's eyes and finally registered the loss of the killer intent. In fact, this time it was replaced with kindness and an almost motherly look which was determined to teach him a few good lessons to make him improve. His depression evaporated and was replaced this time with gratitude to whatever gods were out there which had made it possible for him to be Ranma's friend, without which he wouldn't have met Yoruichi, a stranger who cared for him just like Ranma.

"Thank you Yoruichi. I hope that I'll do better in our next lesson. But before that, can I ask something?"

"What is it?"

Ryoga's eyes went down from her face to her still naked body knelt in front of him. The dreamy look had returned. "Can you be naked everytime we train?"

The answer was a punch that rendered Ryoga unconscious.

Yoruichi sighed then smiled. "I wonder Ryoga, if you would continue to lust for me if you saw my real form," she said as she mentally made an incantation that stripped away the illusion that she had been wearing since coming to Nerima.

The colour of her skin then changed, from dark brown to an ocean blue. Her physically anatomy was the same but now her entire body was dark blue in colour. But the most astonishing feature was her eyes. They glowed bright red and it wasn't due to any powers that she wanted to exhibit. There were no irises, simply a red glow in her eyes that was the trademark of her species, the Chiss.

To be continued….

Well what can I say? Yoruichi is the ULTIMATE ANIME BABE I've seen thus far. She beats everyone in Ranma, Love Hina, Fushigi Yuugi, and even Mai Hime. This is my tribute to her ultra sexy body as well as her endearing character which has made her, I believe, the third most popular Bleach character.

The fact that she was alien was planned from the beginning. I didn't want all the Jedi Guard main characters featured here to be human yet I wanted to make use of a lot of Bleach characters, which are human. The Chiss was easy: just make them blue skinned and red eyed. They're a very cool calculating race in Star Wars. Look for them in Wikipedia under Chiss.

Goodnight and take care. More will come soon now that my exam is finished.


	23. Chapter 20: Spatulas to Axes

**Author's notes**

Well, nothing much to say except that Ukyo is next. Regarding the Tendo sisters, I probably won't dwell too much on their training. Most likely I'll get on to reforming the Nerima Wrecking Crew into Team Ranma and send them down to Onegai Sensei town.

I've made some amendments to Chapter 18: The Horse and the Old Ghoul. Mostly grammatical errors but I've corrected the Fallen Angels battle cry as "Repent for TOMORROW you die", not "TODAY you die" as I thought it was.

Many thanks to Allen Knight for proof-reading this chapter.

**Updated 13/11/2006**

**I forgot to mention that Ardias was not wearing his helmet when he was fighiting Ukyo. Also added a bit description on what he looks like.**

So without further ado:

**Chapter 20: Spatulas to Axes**

**Location: Destiny's Forge, Hall of Illusion, orbiting dark side of the moon of Planet Earth, third planet from the Sun, Solar System.**

In another part of the Hall of Illusion, isolated from the area where Ryoga and Yoruichi were training, Ukyo spat out blood on the floor. She was on all fours on the ground and her clothes were tattered and blood-stained in many places. Her right hand still gripped her battle spatula, and it was notched and bent, the previously sharp edges now dull.

She had no time. She swung her body to the left just as a huge club came down on her head. It missed her by a hair's breath and smashed into the floor, cracking it and making a small crater.

The okonomiyaki chef slipped a few flour bombs, essentially little bags of flour with a touch of explosive powder in them into her hand and threw it at her assailant. The bombs hit her assailant and exploded, creating a small mist of flour throughout the training room. For a moment, she thought she had distracted him enough to recover her wind and breath.

It was not to be so as the huge power armoured figure of Captain Cypher's vice-captain and also Chaplain of the Fallen Angels, Ardias, emerged from the cloud of flour to kick her in the face with his armoured boot. Ukyo's head whipped back from the force of the kick and she finally fell to the floor, completely exhausted.

"Get up. Do not show weakness to your enemy. Your enemy isn't going to wait for you to get up like I am now. Never stop fighting until you are dead. Exhaustion is not an option," Vice-Captain Ardias said in a calm but firm voice, considering he had been beating Ukyo for the past ten minutes.

Ukyo cried, not because her Ran-chan didn't come to save her, but the fact that she seemed to be getting the most outrageous training treatment. She had been training for seven days now and the Vice Captains had put her through the most ridiculous training. First, she had gone through speed training by having a pack of wolves chase her through a forest setting, which turned out to be real wolves when they caught her and proceeded to bite at her. She nearly lost all of her clothes to the teeth of the wolves before Ardias ordered the wolves to stop. But to Ukyo's disbelief, it was only to give Ukyo a ten minute head-start before he set the wolves, which were about the size of small ponies, on her again. When she tried to protest, the Hall Of Illusion merely reset the environment and Ardias and the wolves would vanish. She could only start running, following the red light markers on the trees that were her race track. But always, sooner or later, she would hear the dreaded howling of the wolves and from that moment on, she knew she was doomed for their teeth.

But the wolves somehow never actually made wounds on her. Mostly they tore at her clothes and what bite they did make was somehow gentle, which was mind boggling as their canines were as long as a human fist. Then Ardias would appear out of nowhere and stop the wolves, giving Ukyo another ten minute head start.

This was what she went through for the first day. She only knew that the day was over when Ardias finally appeared without the wolves, informing her that it had been fourteen hours since she had begun and that she could rest. But instead of letting her go back to her quarters, he merely dropped some packages and disappeared, leaving her in the dark forest setting as it simulated nightfall. She was enraged and tried to follow him but the forest seemed to have no end. Moreover, in her haste to search for him, she had forgotten to take the food he had left her. Hungry, cold and exhausted, she nevertheless had some experience in camping due to her long hunt for Ranma, although it was never in the middle of an Amazon Jungle. She managed to find a hollow in a gigantic tree whose name escaped her and built a fire outside the tree to warm herself. Then as she watched the fire burn, she went to sleep. The only good thing was that there were no insects or animals to disturb her throughout the cold night.

The same thing happened the next day, only Ardias wasn't there to halt the wolves. There was only one wolf and this time, its canine's sank into Ukyo's flesh when it bit her arm. She cried with fear and using her techniques, managed to jab one her mini-spatulas into the wolf's left eye and then ran like mad. This time, the wolf did not give her a chance and chased her with the wildness of a predator. Ukyo was bleeding through her left arm where she had been bitten and that had been enough to make her flee with terror and forget about any hope of leniency in her training. She ran and ran until, and just when she couldn't go any further, Ardias appeared in front of her and called the wolf off. Ukyo was completely exhausted and fainted. Little did she realise that she had been running for more than 10 hours straight.

The second night she spent in the Medical Bay, and was thoroughly healed by Yoruichi and Space Marine Apothecary Brother Luke.

Her next four days of training was similarly outrageous. It involved the climbing of a mountain that looked suspiciously like Mount Everest. This time Yoruichi was there, but she made Ukyo carry every bit of climbing equipment as well as their food and clothing while she climbed without any burden but the clothes on her back. Ukyo was furious at being used as a pack animal but had no choice as she had awaken in an unfamiliar snowy landscape while Yoruichi kept leading her at just thirty paces ahead. If Yoruichi could hear the shouts of anger and fury Ukyo bellowed at her, she did not take notice.

The cold was biting and Ukyo thought she would die when night came. Yoruichi seemed perfectly at ease, in fact she was only clad in a sweater and normal black pants with a white scarf around her neck. She only showed up at the end of the day to teach Ukyo how to set up a camp in the middle of the snow. She turned a deaf ear to all of Ukyo's protests and only answered questions regarding how to survive. They both shared the same tent and to Ukyo's enormous shock and embarrassment, Yoruichi slept in the nude not even bothering to cover herself in a blanket while Ukyo was in danger of frost bite and was wrapping everything around herself to keep warm. She turned green with envy, thinking of this strange woman being with her Ran-chan all these years.

Only after she slept did Yoruichi cease feigning sleep and made a quick check-up and physiology check on her. She documented her findings in a datapad.

The next three days continued with nothing but endless snow and marches for Ukyo until they reached the summit of the mountain. Only after they reached the summit did Ukyo finally succumb to the exhaustion. Indeed she actually had no idea that she had finished the last mile as she fainted just as Yoruichi wanted to show her the magnificent view from the summit. The vice-captain smiled and said, "Deactivate Everest simulation." The snowy background dissolved into a large room which was totally black except for the door's silhouette. She then carried Ukyo to ship's medical bay for further tests.

And now, on her seventh day, she was beaten to a pulp by Ardias, clad in full Space Marine armour and armed with a menacing looking club he called the Crozius Arcanum. The Vice Captain armour was heavily ornate with gold skulls decorating much of it, as well as litanies of fury written the black armour in white carvings. But instead of the Death Head helmet that she had initially seen him wearing when she first arrived on Destiny's Forge, he was not wearing a helmet and his face looked surprisingly Japanese although like Cyper, his face too was marked and scarred by more than a hundred years of warefare. He had jet black hair and a face that could have been considered gentle if not for the numerous scars, most notably a long line that run from the right side of his forehead, down the right eye and continued crossing his lips. In addition, Ardias had a blue bionic eye in his right eye whereas his other undamaged eye was black.

The Chaplain had launched a full out attack on her, straight out of Medlab following the frostbite she suffered during her climb of Mount Everest and she decided enough was enough. She couldn't bear it any longer and a rage burned within her with the single goal of making Ardias feel pain.

As Ardias closed in to pick her head up by her hair, she whipped around and using her left hand pulled her head up to bite Ardias' right ear off. Her teeth bit into soft flesh and Ardias gave a roar of pain as he stood up, bringing Ukyo's body with him even as he dropped the Arcanum and punched the side of her chests to get her to release him. But she didn't even flinch although she felt several ribs crack under the force of Ardias' punches.

"ARDIAS, UKYO, ENOUGH!" an angry roar echoed around the Hall of Illusion. The shout was enough to snap Ukyo out of her rage and both Ardias and she observed the advancing form of Cypher approach them. For the first time since she met him, he was wearing his Space Marine power armour, which was surprisingly simple and not ornate at all unlike that used by Ardias, which had numerous gold skulls and litanies of fury written all over the armour. The only thing that differentiated Cypher's armour from his normal Space Marines was the white captains' coat he wore over his armour. And where the Fallen Angels armour was mostly black with gold trimmings, his was completely black which contrasted nicely with his white coat.

"Ukyo, let him go. And sit down, it appears that Ardias has some explaining to do," Cypher said as he put his hands under Ukyo's armpits. Ukyo slowly released her bite and let Cypher carefully carry her down and sit her on the floor, careful not to disturb her cracked ribs.

The okonomiyaki chef had been crying tears of rage and now she launched a furious tirade on Ardias. "WHAT KIND OF MONSTER IS HE? WHAT KIND OF MASTER ARE YOU ALL TO PUT SOMEONE THROUGH THIS SORT OF TRAINING? IS THIS WHAT YOU DO WHEN YOU'RE A SPACE MARINE? IF SO THEN COUNT ME OUT, I WAS SUPPOSED TO TRAIN AS A JEDI, NOT A GENETIC SUPER FREAK!"

The two Space Marines remained silent, and Ardias was unusually calm and did not show the slightest guilt for what he had done. "May I remind you that your friend Saotome Ranma had to bear with this sort of training ever since he was five years old? You should have fared better considering that you have been a martial artists for as long as he has and only now have to go through this training. But I'll admit, you certainly have surpassed our expectations of a normal human."

"Its still mad of you to make me go through this. My Ran-chan would never think of doing this to me. And its not fair, how come Akane gets the extended time treatment? And all alone with my Ran-chan?" Ukyo replied angrily.

Cypher sighed. "Actually Ranma, Jaina and me have been training Akane through various phases. Bear in mind Ukyo, that the Tendo sisters, Akane included, are far below the level of martial arts you, Ryoga and Shampoo exhibit. Oh Akane may be physically stronger than you and Shampoo but she lacks the discipline that you and Shampoo have been trained in since young. Nabiki and Kasumi haven't even touched martial arts for more than ten years since the death of their mother, making them far below even Akane's level who at least knows the basic arts. So yes, the three Tendo sisters need to make use of the extended time to train to become at least Ranma's level before he left Nerima, in order to make a difference in the coming battles. And that is also the goal of training you and Ryoga: to bring you up to that level as well. We're not unrealistic to think that we can turn you into Jedi Captains in two weeks or one year."

The green monster of envy clouded Ukyo's judgement. "Oh, so weak little Akane gets special treatment. How typical, all of you are just obsessed with getting Ranma and Akane hitched aren't you? So much for justice and fairness from the Jedi…"

"BLASPHEMY! REPENT FOR TOMORROW…." Ardias' battlecry was cut off just as he was about to lunge for Ukyo by a vicious backhand from Cypher which knocked the Vice-Captain backward.

"Vice-Captain Ardias, return to the Sanctuary and minister to our brothers. I will speak with you shortly," Cypher said quietly. Ukyo waited for retaliation from Ardias but he merely stood up, bowed and left the room.

"Pretty submissive for someone who supposedly killed hundreds of demons before…" Ukyo began before Cypher's armoured hand whipped around and slapped her. It was a controlled slap and it mostly served to turn Ukyo's head to the other side. But it shocked Ukyo speechless to see the normally calm and composed Cypher, someone she trusted implicitly since the day she met him, actually use physical force on her.

"To my Lord Andy Wong, forgiveness is a gift he freely gives, even to those who have wronged him or sullied his honour. But I will not tolerate unfounded accusations to the Jedi Order Ukyo. Especially when you should know better and yet you still let yourself be consumed by your jealousy and irrationality," Cypher said coldly. "Just so you know, Akane, Kasumi and Nabiki are going through the SAME ordeal you are going through now. The only difference between you and them, apart from the length of time they have to spend on it, is that for them it is training them to be martial artists while for you, we're assessing your endurance, speed as well as your fighting skills."

"That's it? All that was just a test? That's so not fair. Aren't we supposed to go back to Earth soon? And while your testing me, Akane's getting all the fun and training," Ukyo complained.

Cypher folded his arms. "Your grossly simplifying the situation. Unless you regard sparing with me, Jaina and Ranma as fun. I assure you that I'm as adept, if not better than Vice-Captain Ardias in close combat. Just because I prefer to use my pistols doesn't mean I can't wield a sword proficiently. And by the way, you exceeded both Ardias' and Yoruichi's expectations in regards to speed and endurance. Do you have any idea how much you ran or how high you climbed? You practically ran non-stop for more than one hundred kilometres on the first day and another hundred and twenty the next day. Without food I might add. Ardias also noticed that the time the Fenrisian Wolves we used to train you to catch up with you steadily increased during your run, meaning you were going faster and faster."

"Oh and by the way, you climbed four thousand meters of mountains yesterday, or half of Mount Everest which is where you were climbing."

Ukyo's mouth dropped. "SO IT WAS EVEREST! ARE YOU ALL MAD? I COULD HAVE DIED THERE! AND THAT BITCH THAT HAS BEEN HOGGING MY RAN-CHAN FOR SO MANY YEARS MADE ME HER SLAVE AS WELL!" she shouted.

Cypher looked at the datapad held in his hand. "Well, you exceeded her expectations as well. For someone who has not had any training in mountainous regions, you demonstrated extraordinary endurance and tolerance for low air pressure locations. She is quite pleased with you and looks forward to training you."

"No way am I going to under that bitch's heel," Ukyo said at once.

Cypher rolled his eyes. "Did the Jedi Lord not make it clear that now is NOT the time to continue the fiancée war? Do not mistake Yoruichi's devotion and loyalty to Ranma as love, nor Ranma's return of it as romance. Anyway, if Akane can accept Yoruichi, you certainly can considering Akane is arguably the most jealous of the …. I believe Vice Captain Matsumoto coined the term **_Fiancée Brigade_**."

"Ukyo I understand that by your standards, what we're doing is inhuman. But to be honest, we, as in the Jedi Guard want to make sure that your fighting skills are up to par with the imminent war that is coming. To this end, we put you through this ordeal to see just how strong and tough you are. And I repeat, your endurance and speed exceeded expectations, and as a result we can now teach you how to enhance both."

"Your fighting skills however, needs to be changed completely. I'm sorry to say that your Okonomiyaki Chef Style of Martial Arts is inadequate, unsuitable and in my opinion, ridiculous. What are you trying to do, **bake** you opponent?" Cypher mocked.

Ukyo became even more angry. "Hey, that style has served my family for generations, ever since the first Kuonji became an Okonomiyaki Chef and had to defend his business from Yakuza gangsters."

"I don't know what you mean by Yakuza but I'll assume you mean bandits and robbers. Your family were dealing with street urchins who wouldn't know a bolter from a water gun. In any case, while your style may have served you well, it will only make your enemy laugh at you, before they take you, enslave you, rape you, utterly corrupt you and ultimately, damning your immortal soul into the fiery depths of the Warp. I told you before that I was tossed in the warp after the fateful battle that would forever split the Dark Angels Legion. Do you know what they do to the poor souls trapped in the warp?"

Five minutes later, Ukyo was on her knees, bending over a pool of her own vomit. She was green and sick as Cypher gave a witness account of what hell in the Warp was like. The Chef was utterly terrified and despite knowing that they would be fighting demons soon, the consequences of failing was too horrible to imagine.

"Those souls… is there anyway to save them?" Ukyo asked.

Cypher sighed. "That is a question that haunts the Jedi Lord everyday. But he also has faith in his Almighty God that a day will come when all worthy souls will be saved, for his God is truly mighty and real. I have borne witness to many miracles that defy even our current understanding of the Force and the Warp. Many of the Fallen Angels, including myself have considered accepting his faith. But our duty to our Emperor remains and I cannot bring myself and the Fallen to accepting another faith without the consent of my Emperor. As far as I'm concerned, I am still bound by the oath I made to my Primarch to seek the Emperor's forgiveness. Until then, we cannot accept his faith."

"Once in awhile though, our Lord ventures into the warp alone to save souls. His faith and power allows him to do so although in terms of psychic power, Captain Hitsugaya is far more powerful. But he cannot stay there long and doing so can tax his strength and leave him incapacitated for months."

"Anyway, back to your training. Your battle spatula has to go. It is huge, awkward and will be a hindrance in close quarters. Let us look at some weapons to replace it," Cypher said and then went to a computer terminal embedded into the wall and pressed some buttons in it. The setting changed and they were now in a large four wall room that looked as big as the Tendo Dojo but without the high ceiling. In the room were racks of almost every conceivable weapon in the galaxy, minus her battle spatula. There were dozens of swords in their sheaths, from Japanese katanas to the Scottish Highlander claymore that Ukyo saw in the movie "Braveheart". Pole arms of every kind also stood in their racks, spears, tridents, naginatas, long handed knives, long handled axes. There were also countless other weapons, blunt weapons like maces and morning stars, exotic weapons like the nunchaku, three section staffs, vicious looking whips out of the worst S&M fantasies, chains with various weapons attached to them like knives, steel balls and others, Ukyo gradually overloaded her brain trying to figure out what the rest of the weapons were.

Hanging from the walls in glass cases, were an insurmountable variety of guns, including those she had seen Cypher and the Jedi Guard used, so it also included advanced weaponry.

"What about those lightsabers? I don't see them here," Ukyo asked after trying to look for it.

"A lightsaber is an important part of our Jedi identity and is not simply issued like a common gun. Every Jedi Guard in this ship, even those with little to no Force capabilities, makes his own lightsaber. The lightsaber becomes a part of the owner, you can't call a lightsaber a simple weapon anymore. That's why there isn't a lightsaber here. When a Jedi Guard dies, if he has no relatives the weapon is buried or burnt with him depending on the custom or circumstances. It is blasphemous and heresy to steal either the lightsaber or Force weapon of a Jedi Guard," Cypher said.

"What's a Force weapon?" Ukyo asked.

"Did you notice that the Vice Captains both have lightsabers and other physical weapons? Those other weapons are the Force weapons. Like the lightsaber, the creation of the Force weapon is also tied to the training of a Jedi. If the lightsaber represents the culmination of patience and discipline of a Jedi (believe me, it is not easy or fast to assemble a lightsaber), the forging of the Force weapon represents the culmination of the strength and resolve of a Jedi Guard in his commitment to serve and protect. The forging is personally overseen by Jedi Lord Andy Wong, who is, for lack of a better word, a master artificer of weapons, both advance and medieval. He prefers the term blacksmith for some reason though. It is essentially a magically imbued weapon, a semi-sentient entity bonded with its owner, all unique in their own way according to their owner."

"For now, we must get you adapted to a new weapon. Choose a weapon and let's see how you fight with it."

"Do I have to? Can't I change my style to make my Battle Spatula more useful?" Ukyo complained.

"No Ukyo, it may be good for street rats and petty crimes but against the ruinous powers of Chaos or even your modern military weapons, it is impractical."

Ukyo still didn't agree but started walking up and down the racks of weapons. Based on Cypher's words, she guessed that those weapons were not Force weapons but she noted that the quality was astounding and not one of them had any rust or dust on them. She experimentally touched a few of the sword sheathes and could feel the quality of their workmanship by the ornate patterns that was carved into every one of those sheathes.

Eventually, as she looked at the pole arms, she took the closest thing that resembled her battle spatula, a two handed double edged axe or _labrys_. The top of the axe was flat, roughly resembling a spade or her battle spatula. But when she took it from the rack, she nearly doubled over with the weight, which she estimated was at least thirty kilograms. Her battle spatula had only weighed ten kilograms.

"Yikes, maybe this isn't such a good idea," she said as she tried to get used to the weight and hefted it experimentally in her hands.

Cypher took a long sword from the rack and promptly said, "Start Dojo program, preserve weapons from previous program," and the entire setting changed into the dojo environment. The Space Marine lifted the sword in both hands in a high guard position. "OK Ukyo, let's see what your made off. Attack!" he shouted.

This time, Cypher wasn't really fighting her, merely observing for awhile if the weapon suited her. Surprisingly, it did and Ukyo was gradually using the weapon effectively if not efficiently, having adapted part of her Battle Spatula techniques to the axe. The axe was heavier though and after ten minutes of duelling, the toll of Ukyo's previous wounds finally caught up with her and she slumped to the floor and fainted.

The Space Marine looked at the injured form of Ukyo. _This is only a taste of what you might be going through. By the light of the Emperor and Andy's God, I pray that you will live to see the end of this conflict. It would be good if you found happiness as well._

He then carried Ukyo to the Medlab, briefly noting the beautiful look she wore when she was asleep.

**Location: The Tower of Angels, unknown location**

The massive asteroid that served as the Fortress Monastery of the Dark Angels Space Marines chapter was also the largest spaceship-cum-space-station in the entire Imperium of Man. The asteroid was all that was left of the original homeworld of the Dark Angels, Caliban since its destruction. The piece of the planet that remained was also the piece where the original fortress monastery was located and surprisingly intact after the planet being torn apart by the ruinous powers of chaos.

The Dark Angels still called it home. The asteroid had been hollowed out, redesigned and constructed to become a massive space-borne fortress. Warp Engines had also been added which made the asteroid mobile and able to travel. Its size rivalled even the Craftworlds of the Eldar and was larger than the other huge mobile battle station in the Imperium which was the Phalanx, the Fortress Monastery of the Imperial Fists Legion. It was a breathtaking sight, resembling a small moon that was metallic in nature and bristled with enough weapons to destroy entire armadas and served as the base of the Dark Angel fleets as well as their successor chapters. To the Imperium, it was a symbol of might and righteousness as the armoured fist of the Emperor, the Space Marines, crushed the enemies of the Imperium.

This was the Tower of Angels, or more commonly known as the Rock in the Imperium.

Deep in the Rock, in one of the darkest, and most secret portions of the labyrinth of tunnels and dungeons that were walled with Adamantium and blessed with holy sigils to ward of the forces of chaos, a single soul prayed for his life.

_"Salvation can only come through repentance traitor. Submit to your crimes and be free. You are fallen. You are damned. You must die forgiven," _a voice spoke directly into the person's mind.

Fallen Angel number two-zero-one, Joseph Emmanuel gritted his teeth. _"I don't need to confess to you. You have no right to forgive me. I betrayed the Emperor. Only he can forgive me. You dare to usurp his place?" _he spoke back at the voice.

Torrents of pain flooded him. The Fallen Angel was naked and hanging in midair via anti-gravity projectors. Thousands of wires had been pierced through his body and each one served to sever his nerves in every part of his body and cause him not only unending pain, but ever increasing as time passed. There was no rest. He would suffer until he confessed.

The Fallen Angel kept screaming the same line.

"YEA, THOUGH I WALK THROUGH THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH, I WILL FEAR NO EVIL FOR YOU ARE WITH ME, YOUR ROD AND YOUR STAFF WILL COMFORT ME!"

The white robbed Space Marine that supervised the torture resembled Chaplain Ardias except his armour was dark green and he wore white robes with a hood over his power armour. For the first time since he began his grisly office, he was troubled. This Fallen Angel had been the first to be captured, twenty years after that humiliating raid that penetrated the defences of the Rock and resulted in not only the lost of all the Fallen Angels that had been going through the repentance rituals but also resulted in a significant loss of weaponry as the damned heretics stole from the Dark Angels armoury. It served as an ever increasing blot to the Dark Angels honour but even more so to the Inner Circle of the Dark Angels who alone, knew what the Fallen Angels truly were. He was Asmodai, the Master Interrogator Chaplain of the Dark Angels Chapter.

He screamed this for five days, the normal time it took for the Fallen to break and confess but he still showed no sign of giving up.

Two more white robed Space Marines entered the room, observing the purification of Fallen Angel two-zero-one. One did not wear a helmet and his features looked noble and awe-inspiring. He wore a massive sword at his side and accompanying him, was a robed and hooded diminutive figure, only four foot high, carrying a massive Space Marine Helm with a pair of angel wings attached to the sides of the helmet. His robe was not hooded and on its surcoat, was the emblem of the Dark Angels, a sword pointing downwards with a pair of angel wings at the side of the hilt. He was Azrael, Supreme Grandmaster of the Dark Angels Chapter and First of the Deathwing Company.

The other figure was hooded and looked as though he was breathing into a huge respirator which covered more than half of his face. His armour had a sort of metal hood and from that hood, scores of wires connected to the Space Marines' skull. He held a staff in his right hand and he too, appeared troubled as the Fallen Angel continued to shout out his lines. He was Ezekiel, Grandmaster of the Librarians, Keeper of the Book of Salvation and Holder of the Keys.

"I do not understand this. The Fallen's heretical words have given him strength beyond anything I have ever seen. None of the Fallen have ever demonstrated this before…." he stopped mid-sentence, hesitating to mention the blot on the honour of Ezekiel, who as the chief Librarian, was also the ultimate Guardian of the secrets of the Dark Angels.

In other words the security of the Rock was his responsibility and therefore the raid on the Rock was his failure.

But Ezekiel, unlike most Space Marines, was not a prideful man and did not hide his shame. "….. since the humiliating raid by the heretics and traitors to rescue the rest of the traitors as well as thieve our armoury. Rest assured brothers, the next time they come, they will find death and damnation waiting for them," he said.

"This is serious. If the heretics faith is this strong, than we could be looking at a whole new Black Crusade, unlike any we have ever seen. Before this, the heretics and traitors always broke before our righteous might and our holy cleansings. But now, this one resists and his words alone sustains him. We must find the source of this heresy and destroy it," Azrael said.

"What do the Techpriests say of the wreckage of the place we raided to capture him?" Asmodai asked.

Ezekiel answered, "We will not know for another ten days. Damn the techpriests and their heretical Machine God rituals. However, I have gone through what was left of the computer database that was destroyed and I have reason to believe that the Fallen are no longer here."

Asmodai roared, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO LONGER HERE! DO THEY TRULY THINK THEY CAN RUN FROM US FOREVER?"

Unperturbed, Ezekiel replied, "I do not know. But if the existence of Fallen Angel two-zero-one here is any indication, it appears that wherever they went, they intend to return for whatever treacherous reason against our Emperor. More importantly however, I have deduced that there maybe contacts that the Fallen Angels have left behind. And these contacts I have no doubt, will lead us to where they are now."

Asmodai and Azrael looked at Ezekiel in shock. "How did you manage to piece that information? I have been through the remains of the Fallen Angels base, and it was almost completely destroyed before we managed to capture him," Asmmodai said.

"The method is unimportant, what's important is that now we must immediately set course for the Damocles Gulf. From there I will deduce our next move."

Azrael's eyes widened. "The Tau Empire? What possible connection could the Fallen have with those blasphemous xenos? They don't even worship chaos," the Supreme Grandmaster of the Dark Angels spat as he remembered the report Ordos Xenos had sent him about the aliens heretical beliefs in **_The Greater Good_**.

"I do not know for now yet. But our next step to re-capturing the Fallen is there. And it will lead us to the most damned one of all," this time, Ezekiel allowed a tinge or rage and contempt to seep into his voice as he remembered the name of the most hated of the Fallen.

"Cypher," the other two Space Marines snarled in anger.

To be continued

The bit about the True Dark Angels may seem out of place but rest assured, they'll fit in the story later.

To all my readers, thanks again for reading till now.


	24. Chapter 21: Mission Failure

**Author's notes.**

Sorry for the long wait people. Peak period has started for audit of companies with financial year end 31 December 2006 and I've been stressed out since end of November. One thing I promise to give everyone for Christmas: A Christmas chapter! Watch out for it on Christmas day. But if I forget to update and give you that present, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May the Lord protect you all and help you remember that Christ came down to Earth two millennia ago to redeem us of our sins.

So without further do:

**Chapter 21: Mission Failure**

"_For the Jedi there can be no vengeance, only justice."_

- Quote from Andy Wong Fey Hong, First of the Jedi Lords

**Location: Destiny's Forge, Hall of Illusion, orbiting dark side of the moon of Planet Earth, third planet from the Sun, Solar System.**

In a hellish landscape of red earth and huge building sized blackened rocks, a lone woman stood alone with her back to a massive boulder. She wore a blood stained gi that had once been white, but strangely enough, the blood stains were not red like human blood but a gross mixture of orange and green. Her brown hair was tied back into a bun at the back of her head, over it she wore a white coronet of metal to further hold loose strands of hair. She was barefooted and in her hands, she held a two meter metal staff.

Cornering her to the boulder, were at least seven grotesque reptilian humanoids, over two meters tall rivalling the height of the Space Marines. They roughly resembled anthropomorphic crocodiles that were clad only in loin clothes and leather belts for keeping their weapons. Three of them dual wielded blades in their hands while the other four wielded large swords that that resembled huge single edged cleavers. All were charging at her even as she made a wrong turn into a dead end while trying to run away from the reptiles.

The fastest of the reptiles dived at her with both blades raised in preparation for an overhead strike. The lone warrior merely dodged sideways and let it smash itself against the wall. She then swung the staff to strike the feet of another approaching two then swiftly struck the fourth with an overhead swing on the head. Following through on the overhead strike, she thrust her staff forward in an attempt to hit the next monster but this one dodged the staff and closed in to pierce the woman with the blade in his left hand while with his right, he grabbed hold of the staff to make sure that it wouldn't be used back against him.

She dodged the blade by shifting her body to the right then she released her left hand grip on the staff and dealt a blow to the reptile's neck Unfortunately she underestimated the strength of the reptile's flesh and her hand felt as though it had hit hard rock. Moreover, the reptile being was not incapacitated by the blow. Instead it furiously grabbed her with both hands and attempted to crush her in its arms. The woman cried in pain and then gripping her staff with both hands, brought down the middle of the staff on the reptile's head. The reptile shuddered but did not loosen its grip, instead tightened it to the point that the woman warrior felt that her spine about to be broken and she frantically tried to bash the reptile's head further. But she knew she had no chance, for even now, the other four that she had struck down were back on their feet and were gloating at her while the sixth and seventh final reptilians, lifted their cleavers to apparently slash the woman and her assailant as well.

A feral scream pierced the air and from above a high rock, a blue haired girl dived and landed just behind the sixth and the seventh reptilian. With both hands she grabbed the sword arm of one of the reptilians and used it to block the other blow aimed at the brown haired girl. She then released her left hand and dealt a vicious left hook at the reptilian on her right. Her punch smashed into the alien's snout with an audible crack and virtually pushed in the snout into its skull. The reptile stepped back in pain and she then swiftly twisted the reptilian's arm using Saotome School Martial Art's Grappling Hand. The result was the reptile's arm being twisted and possibly broken with the blue haired girl now owning the cleaver sword. The reptile bear hugging the brown haired woman hesitated to see what was going on and the woman it held took the opportunity to drop the staff and deal a thunderclap blow by raising both her arms and striking the side of the reptile's head together. This created a painful ringing sensation in the reptile's head and it finally released her. The blue haired girl seeing that the other woman was no longer in immediate danger, wielded the cleaver sword in her left hand despite it being a two handed weapon and a large one-handed warhammer in the other and charged at the remaining four reptiles just as the other woman picked up her staff and deflected an overhead blow from a cleaver sword. But then, more noises were heard and even more of the reptilians came into view. The two women stood back to back as the horde of reptiles charged at them.

"End simulation," a male voice said and the reptiles, along with the entire landscape vanished leaving the two females standing in an empty room that was completely black save for the silhouette of a door against one of the walls. The speaker of the voice, a man with pig-tailed hair, stood at the doorway and by the look of his face, he was not pleased.

"Kawaiikune, you were supposed to get to the objective point with your cargo, not stay back and help Kasumi. Kasumi already knew what she was doing, and you knew full well the consequences of what would have happened if she had not distracted the Chazrach soldiers away from you. Instead, you ended up risking not only your life but the lives of thousands of soldiers, and for what? Extending Kasumi's life by a few seconds?" Captain Saotome Ranma scolded the blue haired girl.

"She's my sister. How can I leave her behind? Didn't you tell me the Jedi don't leave anyone behind and nobody is expendable?" Akane retorted. She was already frustrated that Kasumi had left her all of a sudden while running away from the Chazrach soldiers even over her protests that Kasumi would distract them while Akane reached the checkpoint.

"Don't misunderstand the ways of the Jedi Guard. Yes, our combat doctrine does not support live baits or wilfully sacrifice soldiers to achieve an objective. Many governments and military organisations willingly leave a few soldiers behind or send some on a suicidal mission in order to achieve an objective. And you know what the worst thing is? Many times these brave operatives don't realise they are on a suicide mission and find themselves abandoned by the people they swore to serve," Ranma said.

"That is something we don't do at all. Yes, there are certain missions where we send out some of our men to certain death. But these are always our last resort, and even if we do implement such a mission, our Jedi Guards are always informed exactly what is happening. We do not always think in what Captain Hitsugaya calls Utilitarianism: the right action is the action that benefits the most people to the detriment of a few. Some of our allies, the Tau Empire take this philosophy to the extreme, where they will wilfully sacrifice soldiers and planets to in order to gain a strategic advantage. For the Jedi, we're a little more selfish in terms of preserving lives but it does not mean we do not know the meaning of sacrifice."

"But why?" Akane balked. "Why can't we always save everyone? Are you saying that one day, I might have to leave Kasumi behind? I thought you promised that we would all come out of this alive. What am I going to say to my mum or even God when I die? That I wilfully left Kasumi behind, not withstanding the whole sacrifice bit? Leaving behind is leaving behind no matter how famcifully we phrase it. Didn't you tell me before? _A sword is used for killing, no matter how beautifully crafted it is or for what purpose it was made_, so however you word it, that makes a Jedi a killer."

Inside herself, Kasumi was impressed with Akane's reasoning. She remembered a time when Ranma and she would argue and it would most likely be settled by the blunt edge of a mallet first before they would talk. Now they were doing more talking and less malleting. She felt like interjecting but decided to let Ranma finish lecturing Akane. She also didn't know whether her actions had been right during the mission.

"You raise a valid point Akane and sadly, I don't have a straight answer beyond simply saying, that's the way the world goes. I don't share my Lord's faith, and being the egoistic idiot that I still am, I can't simply believe that it's all in God's hands. But even for our Jedi Lord, making such a decision pains him. And he has been making these painful decisions again and again for more than thirty thousand years if I estimate his age correctly. No, I don't know exactly how old he is although I do know when his birthday is. Every time he approves an operation where he knows a Jedi will be sacrificed, he will spend days in the chapel praying after the operation is completed. Such a victory never pleases him. This is opposed to a straight battle where of course, Jedi fight and some always die but at least it's not because he wilfully ordered them into their deaths. Their deaths are in their own hands as opposed to being pre-determined earlier by a council."

Ranma's frowned again. "Know this Akane, and also Kasumi, as we've seen today anything can happen during a battle or mission. I had the simulation create a random bunch of scenarios which had the potential to jeopardise your mission. Kasumi, would you please give me that disc please."

Kasumi nodded. The scenario had started simple enough, sneak into a warehouse situated in the middle of a rocky mountain and copy certain data from the main computer. They had been fully briefed on the scenario by Ranma earlier and were given specific information that enabled them to sneak into the warehouse, bypass the security and even disable the guards that had been protecting the computer mainframe without anyone noticing. The problem was the data they were collecting.

It was the personnel files of what seemed to be Jedi Guard but the thing that struck Kasumi and Akane was how dashing and handsome the Jedi were. Not all of them were humans but those that were not were still humanoid enough to be counted as stunning even to Kasumi's conservative eyes. Despite being college students and moreover, having gone through extensive training in the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts as well as Wong's School of Martial Arts for approximately three months, they were still young girls and even Kasumi was somewhat distracted by the images that she failed to notice a Yuuzhan Vong alien seeing then and promptly sounding the alarm at the warehouse.

What occurred next could be likened to an episode of Tom and Jerry between the Tendo sisters and the Yuuzhan Vong slave guards, the reptilian Chazrachs who chased them all over the warehouse. Kasumi and Akane frantically ran through all the contingency escape plans that Ranma had already laid out for them should they be discovered but they still kept running into more and more guards. By the time they finally found their way out of the warehouse, the outside perimeter was already crawling with guards trying to make sure the intruders stayed inside. Moreover, they were one hour behind schedule and had approximately ten minutes to reach the checkpoint where they would be able to escape.

It was then that Kasumi pulled Akane aside and insisted that Akane must reach the checkpoint and escape first. Kasumi would stay behind and distract the Yuuzhan Vong while Akane escaped. If all went well, Kasumi would then head for the wilderness and hide out from the Yuuzhan Vong until such time that the Jedi Guard would come and liberate the planet. Akane of course, refused to go through with the plan but as they were heading towards the checkpoint, Kasumi purposely left her and proceeded to lead a good portion of the reptilian Chazrach away from her. Akane apparently noticed she was missing just as she was about to reach the checkpoint and promptly turned back. This resulted in the Tendo sisters being cornered and essentially loosing the mission.

Ranma flicked the disc which was half the size of a CD within his fingers. "Lesson One, always be mindful of your surroundings. Never let yourself be distracted by anything other than your mission parameters. There are some exceptions or special circumstances but that's more advance training. I can't believe I'm saying this but just because of a few pictures of pretty boys, you missed out seeing the Vong and it has cost you your mission and your lives. The Vong do not take prisoners and that's actually their good point. Happosai will do no such thing and would relish having any one of you or even myself in custody." The pig tailed man shuddered as he envisioned what Happosai would do to his girl form.

"Secondly, this is for you Akane, orders are orders. Kasumi was fully in the right to order you to proceed to the checkpoint while she stayed behind. She was your mission leader and you were supposed to follow her order. A soldier at your level must have obedience and faith as your greatest virtue. You have to trust your leader or captain in the field of battle. Trust is everything in the Jedi Guard command structure otherwise nobody will follow orders and attempt to do their own thing. The end result would be a botched operation where everybody will die."

Ranma then looked at Kasumi. "What you did was very brave and there's little I can reprimand you for except for the initial distraction. As always, Kasumi-nechan, you demonstrate a sense of self-sacrifice that belies your age. Remember that when you are a leader, you are responsible for everyone's well-being. You have to constantly assess the situation and think of the big picture. Your integrity is of the utmost importance for if your subordinates do not trust you, then the mission team is doomed to failure before it even begins."

Kasumi looked quizzically at Ranma. "I'm curious Ranma. I've studied the military manuals under Captain Cypher but I was surprised that for this simulation, there's only me and Akane. I thought the Jedi Guard were organised into tactical squads of ten. Even Neji's Scout and Assassin Squads are organised around teams of three. I think you would have included Nabiki in this simulation with us to gauge our progress to date."

"You are correct; I wanted to assess your training progress. It has been three months since we started and this simulation served as a test on how much you've learnt. But as long as we're talking about Nabiki…." Ranma sighed and looked disturbed which didn't go unnoticed by the Tendo sisters.

"What happened? Is there anything wrong with Nabiki?" Kasumi asked, extremely concerned as she hadn't seen Nabiki since they started their individual training.

Ranma looked at Kasumi. "She's pushing herself too hard and Captain Neji is worried about her motives. She is not doing well in martial arts and combat training. Her body is a bit weak and she has a bit of a glass jaw problem. Meaning she can take very little punishment." Ranma stood closer to Akane and Kasumi. "I fear that the psychological impact of her torture still weighs heavily on her. I don't want to alarm the either of you but Nabiki might not be cut out for our training even if we extended time by one year. She has a great deal of psychological barriers to overcome."

"Is it because of the Jedi Code? There are certain things I'm sure Nabiki wouldn't understand, such as enemy quarter and prisoners of war. She would certainly bear a grudge against Herb and Happosai and apply every possible way she knows to make them suffer," Kasumi said.

The pig-tailed martial artist nodded. "Captain Hyuuga Neji and Nabiki have had a lot of arguments. What makes this even more worrisome is that among the captains, Neji is considered the most merciless. Ten years ago when we were still fighting the Yuuzhan Vong, he gave no quarter and was not content to drive away the Yuuzhan Vong aliens but exterminating them altogether. Actually, it wasn't much of a problem handling prisoners of war because the Yuuzhan Vong warriors very rarely surrendered. They themselves gave no quarter and expected none. However, when we started to become victorious in our battles, he would frequently pursue the aliens all the way to their Worldships, which are giant ships that are also planets that house their population. He once managed to pursue a retreating Yuuzhan Vong attack fleet and exterminated them. Only he didn't stop and continued on to attack their Worldship and using his taskforce, destroyed the Worldship and everything in it, including the Yuuzhan Vong slaves of which many came from Andy Wong's galaxy."

Ranma shivered as he recalled the few times Andy Wong really lost his cool. "The shockwave of millions perishing in one time, especially the natives of his home galaxy was felt by all of the Jedi Guard and when Neji returned to the _Destiny's Forge_, he found himself attacked by Andy Wong. I won't go into details but the end result was Neji thoroughly thrashed with a newfound respect for the value of civilian life and casualties."

"So you see, Neji is already the least accommodating about the idea of honour in combat and rules of war. And Nabiki is still bitching about adhering to it. Her training is stuck now because Neji refuses to divulge further techniques to her until she can answer truthfully that she will not only obey the Jedi code but accept them in her heart. Just obeying is not enough; a Jedi Guard initiate must believe in it otherwise the Jedi Guard would be a lot larger now."

"Maybe I can talk to her. I think she's trying to handle her problems on her own and is still trying to bear the shadow of Herb and Happosai alone. I don't want to question your methods Ranma, but maybe you should have trained us together," Kasumi said.

Ranma shrugged. "Our Jedi Lord probably made an oversight on this but he suggested that you guys run through the basic training with the Captains first. For you and Akane, Captain Cypher and I have taken turns to teach you the basics of martial arts, chi-based techniques, weapons training and of course the Jedi Code. For Nabiki, Captain Jaina and Captain Neji have been teaching her."

"I'll tell you now that while the both of you have passed the written test as well as the Codex Interrogation for the Jedi Code in little more than three weeks, Nabiki still hasn't passed the Codex Interrogation."

The two Tendo sisters shuddered as they remembered their interrogation at the hands of Chaplain Ardias. Shortly after the written test which by itself took 5 hours to complete, the Chaplain had immediately dragged them into a pitch dark room save for a small beam of light illuminating a small circle. He had made them stand in that circle while he circled around them in darkness, firing penetrating questions from the dark and at times, appearing right behind them with his scary death mask, like the Angel of Death himself judging if the soul before him would be condemned to hell or not. The interrogation had drained them psychologically and physically as they stood in that circle for approximately half a day with non-stop interrogation and no rest.

"Is it really wise to make Nabiki go through the Codex Interrogation? She's only just been imprisoned and tortured. The environment you made her go through may only make her fears worse," Kasumi said.

"I know but the Captains thought that she would have pulled through in the end. Now we discover that her spirit is still weakened and in danger of being consumed by fear of the lack of control over our future. She is scared Kasumi, and she is letting that fear consume her. Ardias nearly broke her will during the interrogation, luckily Matsumoto was there and stopped it before it got out of hand."

"Rangiku? How come she was there?" Akane was surprised that the buxom vice-captain was involved in that gruesome interview.

Ranma snorted. "She's the self-appointed therapist of the Jedi Guard, remember? Well she is the head therapist anyway and is actually a certified one from the planet Corellia. Normally she doesn't stick her nose into Ardias' interrogations but in your cases, due to you all being untrained and if you don't mind me saying, not really sound of mind, the Captains decided to let Matsumoto observe the interrogations. For the both of you, there were no problems. But for Nabiki, she nearly went catatonic even when she was initially put in the spotlight. After only ten minutes of questioning, she was already shaking with fear and Matsumoto had to stop the interview before it got worse."

"Please Ranma, let us speak to her. I know Captain Neji saved her and Nabiki has already developed a deep sense of trust in him but she knows nothing about his personal history to entrust her with her feelings and emotions. Even to us, when our mother died, she never confided with us her feelings and emotions. She kept going on as though nothing had changed. We all did actually, which is why we're here today," Kasumi said, having long realised that their denial of reality had made them weak emotionally today.

The pig-tailed martial artists sighed. "Neji hasn't given up yet. But if he does, let my Lord Andy Wong try first. Neji's reports as you know have not been promising and my Lord will probably take a hand in this. He has a wonderful knack of knocking sense into hard headed people, such as me. Although in my case, it was a little bit more literal than metamorphic," Ranma grinned sheepishly while unconsciously rubbing the top of his head.

Akane smirked. "Lemme guess, Saotome foot in mouth disease again?"

"Hey, it worked in the end," Ranma protested. "If you must know, I had the bright idea of fighting fully armoured warriors with my bare hands and with no armour in my first battle. I told him a true martial artists doesn't need weapons. The net result was a hole in my chest and I broke every bone in my arms and hands. And AFTER THAT, a nice concussion to knock me out, courtesy of Lord Andy Wong."

"I'm surprised that even he can knock something into you thick head," Akane said.

"Oh believe me; he can do a lot more than just knocking sense into me. Anyway, back to your training. Computer, dojo scenario please," Ranma said and the black room immediately became the enlarged Tendo Dojo.

"Alright, both of your martial arts proficiency has reached Shampoo's level by now. Again, team work is the key since there's very little chance of either of you defeating Happosai let alone Herb alone. Both of you have filled a niche of strength that is quite powerful with further practice. Akane, you have your 350 pound gorilla strength which rivals Ryoga's while Kasumi has the speed and dexterity that nearly equals mine before I left Nerima. Don't be too cocky yet and think you have formed the perfect team because from what Lord Andy Wong has said, you will have to deal with magical attacks, which is a completely different sort of training. Captain Hitsugaya and Vice-Captain Matsumoto will be involved in this for the last part of your training. We'll also see how sensitive you are to the Force then."

"Now I want you both to attack me. I will see how you all do by yourselves now before I teach both of you some **_synchronised slaying _**techniques." The pig tailed warrior went to the middle of the square while the Tendo sisters dropped their weapons outside the square and followed suit.

"Again, Happosai isn't going to wait for you to bow and pay respects. But as I've said, honour and respect is extremely important in the Jedi Guard. The Code is there for a reason; to give a sense of decency and civilisation so that even in the worst of scenarios, we won't degenerate into bloodthirsty animals no better than our enemies. We pride ourselves in never losing our dignity even as we stand on the brink of destruction. Lord Andy Wong lives by two very simple principles: Follow God and love thy neighbour. Although the Jedi Guard isn't a Christian Order, the foundation of the Code comes from Christianity if you look hard enough. And just as Lord Wong's God is just and wrathful, it is also merciful and compassionate, hence the whole Jedi Code being geared around rules of combat and enemy quarter."

"OK, enough talk. On my mark, attack me with everything you've got." The three combatants readied themselves into fighting stances, in Ranma's case it was defensive while the two sisters assumed aggressive stances. Both sisters were facing Ranma five paces away.

"Begin," Ranma said.

Kasumi attacked first using the Mantis Fist that had been first taught to her by Ranma. Her fist attacks were a blur and she launched a series of precision strikes all aimed to attack pressure points of the human body and disrupt the flow of chi. Ranma countered with his usual Saotome style Fists but then as he punched Kasumi, the brown haired girl ducked and Ranma found the fist of his innazuke where Kasumi's head had been. His fist met Akane's with an audible crack but fortunately, Ranma had switched his fist's chi configuration into the Shaolin fist, which emphasized power and stone endurance, which was what Akane had been using. Kasumi from below then swept her feet at Ranma's who then leapt into the air.

_Uh oh, big mistake, now Ranma is in his element,_ Kasumi thought as the pig-tailed martial artists jumped. Then to her horror, Akane had also leapt into the air.

"Akane, no!" Kasumi cried then decided she had better aid her and leapt into the air as well.

"RANMA!" Akane shouted as she attempted the Saotome mid-air strikes which she believed she had perfected after months of practice. In truth, she had learnt to do the mid-air kicks and punches correctly but she had yet to learn the counter-techniques which Ranma was well versed in. So she found most of her punches and kicks meeting thin air as Ranma casually dodged every strike with normal speed. He then noted that Kasumi was coming fast on him and delivered a fast kick to Akane's gut, propelling her away just as Kasumi grabbed his foot. She then used all of her might to throw Ranma to the ground rather than keep the battle in the air.

Ranma landed gracefully on his feet but he had no respite as Akane had instantly recovered from hitting the ground and was now a whirlwind of destruction that would have given him a run for his money had she fought him like this on his first day at the Tendo Dojo. As befitting her nature, the Shaolin Fist, the most power intensive of the five fighting styles he taught Akane, suited her well and it emphasized just enough agility and speed to make him not simply call her a 350 pound gorilla.

_Problem with this fist, is that it's so structured and still. Bruce Lee would never approve this style,_ Ranma thought as he adopted the Drunken Fist style to adapt and dodge Akane's moves. _Then again, this is one of Lord Wong's most common techniques and he has beaten me before_.

A flash at the corner of his eye warned him that Kasumi had just closed in on him. He barely missed Kasumi's leftfoot as she launched a flying kick at him. And then he made his first mistake. He thought the momentum would carry Kasumi away from his fight with Akane and promptly focused on Akane again but true to the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts, she spun in mid air right after Ranma and delivered a kick with the back of her right leg at Ranma's head again. The kick connected but it didn't serve to hurt Ranma so much as surprise him. This in turn allowed Akane to finally land a good solid punch at Ranma's abdomen.

The pit-tailed martial artists **_ooomphed _**in surprise but quickly distanced himself from the Tendo sisters by somersaulting backwards to the edge of the room. The Tendo sisters immediately moved to close the distance but just then, the door to the Hall of Illusion opened and Captain Cypher entered the dojo. The armoured Space Marine immediately jumped in between Ranma and the Tendo sisters and engaged the astonished Tendo sisters.

"Cypher, what the hell are you doing?" Ranma growled as he leapt back into the fray.

"Its my turn now remember? They're supposed to go through firearms training now. Besides, I think they've already surpassed the benchmark you've set for them at this point," Cypher said as he casually deflected Kasumi and Akane's attacks.

"OK, time out, let me finish my turn properly," Ranma said. The Tendo sisters and the Captains then disengaged and faced each other respectfully in the middle of the square. Then all three bowed.

"Well done Kasumi, Akane. You are well on your way to becoming great martial artists. But I must warn you, there's a lot more to go. Even I am currently training myself to battle Happosai and Herb as well. Never stop learning and don't make the mistake of assuming you know enough. Remember to practise the fighting styles before you sleep tonight. Cypher, if you don't mind, make Akane practise the Saotome Mid Air Attack Counters after the firearms training."

"But Ranma, where are you going now? I thought you would continue the training with us?" Akane said; not happy whenever Ranma left the training area to do other things.

"Akane, I've got responsibilities as a Captain as well. Besides, I promise to check up on Nabiki, OK?" Ranma gave Akane the smile that always sent women swooning over him. It didn't make Akane swoon but her eyes softened and she just saluted Ranma as did Kasumi. He saluted them back and left the Hall of Illusion.

"Computer, reset environment to firing range," Cypher ordered and the environment then changed into a long room that resembled a firing range from the American movie called Lethal Weapon, which was Akane's favourite gun slinging western. A table also materialised in front of them, and on it were at least twenty types of hand guns, all of which Kasumi noted, seemed to be present-day Earth technology instead of the highly advanced ones the Jedi Guard often used.

Cypher took a Glock 18C pistol from the table then turned to Kasumi. "I will ask again, are you sure you are ready for this?"

Kasumi looked at the gun, one of the simplest yet effective designs in her world, yet still a gun. But she wanted to learn everything she could to protect her family, even if it meant overcoming her fear of firearms.

She took another Glock18C and loaded it with a magazine clip as per her study of modern firearms. "We stand ready Captain," she said, flashing him her usual cheery smile.

To be continued:


	25. Side Story 3: Blessings of the Heart

**Author's testimonial**

An uncanny and wonderful thing happened to me yesterday morning when I went to church. After the first batch of worship and singing, the pastor asked us to turn to the person next to us and pray for each other for the coming New Year and also for revival in our journey of faith and relationship with God. It so happened that the person was a lady who happened to live down my road and always noticed me whenever I went out for a jog or walk for the past 12 years. And her husband prayed for me and he told me:

_Chong Nyan, when I see you, I see you with a pen writing. And the Lord is with you, guiding your pen. _

……. my instant reaction was: how did he know I'm currently writing my own fanfiction? Then my later thought was it can also refer to my work as an external auditor where I write reports and notes all the time for my seniors, managers and partners to understand.

Since I accepted Christ in January, I try to praise God in everything that I do and ask for his guidance. In regards to this fiction, it was only recently that I tried to remember to pray that the Lord will guide my fingers and my imagination. And today, I'm reminded that even in this work which grew out of my desire to see Ranma have a proper happy ending, the Lord has been guiding my hand, mostly through my own character Andy Wong, which I also made a Christian after approximately 16 years of daydreaming. And today, I want to thank God by praying for everyone who has bothered to read even the first line of my story, for I know that it is by His grace that I can get such wonderful reviewers. So for this chapter, I invite you all to be characters in my story for this chapter, and I wish to bless you all and share the good news that it may touch and bring renewal to your lives.

**Chapter 22: Blessings of the Heart**

"_For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son, that whoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have eternal life."_

_John 3:16, The Bible, New International Version_

**Location: Destiny's Forge, Hangar Bay, orbiting dark side of the moon of Planet Earth, third planet from the Sun, Solar System.**

The Jedi Guard stood at attention in columns of 100. There were 10 rows in each column with 10 Jedi Guards each, which formed a full 100-strong Company of Jedi Guards. In this way, the Jedi Guard of **_Destiny's Forge _**were assembled, three thousand and fifty four strong. They were indeed an odd mixture of humans and aliens seemingly mixed chaotically with no order. Here and there one could see the odd Space Marine in a purely alien squad while in another row, the red-eyed Yoruichi stood in the middle of nine human males. All in all there were thirty full companies while the thirty first company only had fifty four Jedi.

To Nabiki, who stood in the back most rows next to a row of five Terminator, three humans and two green skinned aliens with the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew, including the fathers and Nodoka, it was a sight for sore eyes. She thought it would be cooler if the Space Marines were grouped together along with the others in their respective species groups. Right now, it looked like the weirdest cosplay gathering she had ever attended. Right now she, her sisters, Ryoga and Ukyo were wearing the white tunics with white pants. Although they trained barefoot most of the time, for now all wore brown boots. Ranma had earlier mentioned that it was the basic uniform of a Jedi trainee or Padawan.

"Never thought the Jedi Guard would look like a circus when grouped together. I feel like I'm in a circus freak show," Nabiki said aloud.

"These are their 10-strong tactical squad and 100-strong company formations Nabiki. They fully complement each other and each squad has everyone from the six divisions in them," Kasumi who stood on her right said sagely.

"Yeah but where how in the whole wide galaxy do these aliens ever become Jedi," Nabiki whispered, indicating a three of diminutive bear like creatures that resembled four feet Care Bears a few rows down. They wore hoods that seemed to be made out animal skin and wore nothing else but a belt to which a lightsaber and blaster holster was attached. In their hands they gripped five feet long spears which appeared to be primitive and looked like they had stone heads.

Akane stepped on Nabiki's foot, making her wince in pain and glare at the blue haired girl. "Sister, they may be able to hear you, you know, stop being so rude in front of the Jedi Guard. Why are you so grouchy? We're getting a whole day off to rest soon. I even heard that we're allowed to go back to Earth."

"How can they even think of giving us a break now? Happosai could be looking for the alien now; maybe he already has it in his hands and is planning whatever twisted scheme to hurt us. This is ridiculous, it's like the Jedi are treating our situation as a small problem. I want to get back to the training, and they want us to take a picnic," Nabiki said angrily. "Besides, what the hell are we even doing here? They give us a day off and then wake us up at 5 a.m. to this ….. school assembly.

Akane sighed. _And everyone says **I **have temper problems._ "One-chan, we're all safe for now. Let us not worry about the past now and just have fun for a day."

"Oh my, I think the assembly is about to start," Kasumi sad as the Jedi Captains entered the hangar and climbed a large stage where there was a podium for some to address the assembly. All were wearing in their full Captain regalia, even Cypher who wore his white coat over his power armour.

"CAPTAINS ON THE DECK!" Chaplain Ardias shouted and everyone instantly stiffened themselves to military attention, with heads held high and hands behind their backs. The Tendo sisters, Ryoga and Ukyo did likewise while the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew merely stood a bit straighter.

The Jedi Lord then took his place behind the podium, flanked by the remaining Jedi Captains.

"Jedi Guards, Guardians of the Galactic Alliance, Protectors of the peace, Heroes of the galaxy. Good morning," he simply said.

If she could, Nabiki would have face vaulted. _Well, that was eloquent,_ she thought.

"You have all received the bulletin and briefings by your Officers and Captains. As you all know, what was supposed to be a simple ride home for our esteemed and honourable Captain Saotome Ranma and a holiday for the rest of the Jedi after a decade of constant warfare, has expanded into a matter that requires our personal attention. Many of you may wonder how can this little world, seemingly insignificant in light of all we've seen, could be the subject of a crisis that would require **OUR **intervention. The wiser of you would guess that if a world like this can give birth to someone as powerful as Ranma, it is no surprise that his return has heralded a greater evil which is befitting his Saotome luck."

This made several of the Jedi Guards chuckle, mostly from the Fourth Division medics as well as the 5th Division Assault members, whom Ranma interacted with the most and were aware of Ranma's ability to attract trouble and chaos.

"All of you have gone through the Trial of Fire. I have made you go through the depths of hell before becoming a Jedi Guard, to defeat the demons that have hid in your hearts and mind in order and be the master of them. Many of you have lost much if not everything in the Yuuzhan Vong war. Fear gripped your hearts and made you do terrible things to survive. Fear led to anger. Anger leads to hate, and in the end, hate leads to suffering. These are the words of the Jedi Lord before me, Jedi Lord Yoda, although his title was a secret from the rest of the Jedi Order of the Old Republic. This is also true for me. Even here and now, I still feel fear."

This jolted Nabiki into wakefulness as she stared in disbelief at the Jedi Lord admitting fear.

"Yes, I also fear. Fear is a part of all of us and it is always foolish to think that we can ever be without fear. Some would call me weak, or a lunatic, for saying this. How can we, one of the most elite and powerful fighting force, know fear? The wiser among us would answer if you do not fear; you are either dead or stupid. I couldn't agree more. Denying your fear will only amplify it before disaster strikes. So what is it that I fear?"

Andy Wong took a deep breath. "I fear a world without God. Where nobody remembers His name and the commandments He laid down for every one of us, irregardless of our origins. I have yet to encounter a world which has not heard of the word of the Messiah, the son of God sent down to redeem a sinful world. But more often than not, that word, that gospel of truth, that good news is forgotten or submerged in the other half-truths until nobody can experience the joy of relating with God. You all know the Faith that I believe in and are aware on my views of God and the Force."

"Those who are well versed in the history know that the **Joint Efficient Defence Intitative** as the Jedi were originally known was not created by me alone. There were other forces in the galaxy as powerful if not more powerful than I. Some were even users of the Dark Powers that characterised the Sith Empire yet were not evil and did not succumb to the thirst for power that most characterises the human race. But one of the most important parts of developing the Jedi Code, what to do and what not to do. This task I took to heart to draft the Jedi Code as you know it, based on the teachings of the Lord, my God and Saviour. It is no secret that I wish to evangelise the thousands of beings that joined the Jedi Guard and through them, their respective races and governments. But the other powers respected me and had seen enough of the powers and miracles I did in His name to know that He existed."

"I love the Jedi Order, because for the first time, the forces of good were united and through our deeds of heroism and honour, many saw the validity of the morality we applied. And to those who dug deeper, they would find the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost in the foundation of the code. Every one of the Jedi Guard became my children and we became the greatest family the galaxy had ever seen. All they needed to do, was make a choice to follow Him. That would be their own decision and I was happy to let them choose. Believe me, converting another by force, is the worst way to spread the gospel."

The face of the Jedi Lord darkened. "And now, we face an imminent chaos taint by a group of demented individuals totally dedicated to their hedonistic desires. Individuals who have no respect for the female sex or the value of life. More dangerously, these people have knowledge of the forces of chaos and dark sorcery and how to use them. This combination, based on my observations, is enough to pose a very real threat to Ranma. Yes, enough to threaten a Jedi Captain and by extension, the Jedi Guard. They represent everything that the Jedi Guard isn't. Speak the Code to me."

Every Jedi Guard, including the Captains, the Tendo sisters, Ryoga and Ukyo promptly chanted the Jedi Code:

_We are the Guardians of peace in the galaxy._

_We use our power to defend and protect, never for attack._

_We respect life in all forms._

_We stand between the darkness and the light._

_We stand on the bridge, and no one may pass._

_We live to serve others, not ourselves._

"Yes indeed. And I say now that these people are everything we are not. They will enslave, torture, murder, kidnap, rape, destroy and even desecrate the bodies of their victims. Their deeds have been exposed to us four days ago. The members of 2nd Division have diligently and painstakingly followed their movements and their activities and the number of slaves they hold is appalling. Thousands of girls and boys, some no older than five years old, being traded like commodities. Some were kidnapped from their families, more still were forced into such a livelihood to pay off debts. Even parents were forced to sell their children by these individuals for nothing more than a bowl of rice. These people delight in misery. Tears are their source of ecstasy and pain is their pleasure."

"Traditionally we would not interfere even in such a state. There are many forces of good in this world, more than most other worlds in fact that are dedicated to fighting such evils. But now I find that there are some on this world that possess heretical knowledge that would be devastating on a galactic scale. Yes my children, I speak of the forces of Chaos. Many of you have encountered such monstrosities in the Trial of Fire. Now we are about to fight them in the material realm where their martial prowess, especially the devotees of the chaos god Khorne, are more than a match for the Jedi Guard and well beyond this world's capabilities of defending itself as far as we know."

The Jedi Lord stood silent for a moment. "We have seen too much death already. Three hundred and sixty five trillion lives have been lost in the space of seven years in the war against the Yuuzhan Vong. Of our number, three thousand have perished since we first rode to war against the Yuuzhan Vong. Peace has come to the galaxy, but the victory is bittersweet. And now we face another enemy of the Jedi Guard, this time an ancient one, the forces of chaos. Instead of rest and relaxation, we find a chaos invasion imminent and even the possibility of an alien invasion on a hapless planet all because these pathetic excuses for humans wish to satisfy their hedonistic desires."

"I love all of you. Love is an emotion that has been played around too often but it doesn't change the fact that it is real. It is because of God's love for that he sent his only son not only in this planet but on virtually every plane and culture in the known galaxy. And it is this uncompromising love that also forms the foundation of the Jedi Code. Why do we serve? Why do we protect? Why do we stand between the darkness and the light? It is all because we love."

"Therefore as per our tradition before we ride to war, I would like to personally bless and pray for every one of you that you would live through this conflict as well as to renew the prayers that you have sent through the prayer journal circulated in our Jedi Network. To those of you, who have accepted Christ, I pray for renewal in your journey of faith and that your shield of faith will carry you through this conflict. For the rest of you, as I would like to pray for your salvation and protection through the power of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit that you will one day, establish the connection that I share with Him and he will bring renewal in your lives."

"As before, I ask permission to do this. If there is any who object to me praying for you, speak now or hold your peace," Andy Wong said.

Nabiki looked around to see if anybody said anything but nobody did. She couldn't believe she was hearing this evangelistic talk from a bunch of alien beings, and a Jedi Lord to boot. She had been to such talks before but it always bored her and seemed senseless and illogical. But she saw none were objecting and sighed inwardly, just wishing to get over with this whole ceremony.

The Jedi Lord than moved down the stage and the Jedi Captains continued to move a little behind him. He walked to the first Jedi in the corner, a human from the 2nd Division. The man bowed his head as the Jedi Lord raised up right hand to lay it on his head while with his left hand, he grasped his shoulder.

"Heavenly father, I pray for Jedi Microman that you will watch over him and his family. Know Lord that he has been fateful to the laws you have set down for us though he has yet to accept you Lord. I pray that that you will find your way into his heart and fill his heart in the greatness of your glory and the comfort of your love. He is a loving man, a kind man and a dedicated member of the Jedi Guard and everything it stands for my Lord. May he find strength in you Lord one day and until then, I pray that your grace will extend to him, whom I believe will be your loyal servant one day. In Jesus most previous name I pray, Amen." Jedi Microman's hand gripped Andy Wong's left shoulder and he whispered, "Thank you Lord for your love," before he reverted to military attention.

Andy Wong then moved to the next, who was a white-armoured Imperial Stormtrooper and repeated the same gesture. "Dear Lord, I call upon you to bless my dear brother Jerry, who pray will continue to seek you out Lord and know you are God. Heavenly father I pray for your mercy and grace to fall upon him and that he will trimph and prosper in all aspects of his life. Bless his family and his friends with peace and happiness so that they will continue to live and one day know you Lord. In Jesus mighty name I pray, Amen." Jedi Unipeg responded by saluting the Jedi Lord in the traditional Imperial Stormtrooper Corps style before the Jedi Lord moved on to the next one in line.

This one was a cyborg, which looked mostly human save for his head which was completely in the shape of a robotic human skull. "Lord I pray for my brother SS4-Link, that he know your love, and that in spite of all his inadequacies, fears and insecurities, that he will find peace in your arms Lord, for in you, all things are possible and when you stand by him, not even I can be greater than him. Into your hands I commit his life and that you will keep making him a stronger and better person in life. In Jesus holy name I pray, amen." The human skull, which showed no emotion but housed a human brain in it, bowed its head and thanked the Jedi Lord. The Jedi Lord smiled before going to the next being, diminutive humanoid who looked human save for a tail protruding from his buttocks..

"Heavenly Father, I pray for Brother Goku, that you will keep him safe in the days to come and that your grace falls upon him so that he will remember that You are God and that you sent your son to redeem our sins. Bless his family and his friends that they too will know the good news and that armed with this new shield of faith, they will be able to withstand all attacks from the evil one and peace and prosperity will be abundant in his life. In Jesus most precious name I pray, amen," Goku also saluted the Jedi Lord as he moved on.

A Space Marine stood next. "Brother Matrias of the Fallen Angels, I pray that the time will come that you will earn the Emperor's forgiveness and lay to rest all the burden's that have haunted you your whole life. I pray that you will come before God with all of your sins and burdens and release them to Him for there is nothing that He cannot do. May He remind you that He will always be there fore you, no matter how far you fall, no matter how unclean you are, no matter how despised you are, God loves you and wishes nothing more for you to be free of those burdens and I pray you will find happiness, whether it is given to you by God's grace or when you finally seek his word of peace and the gospel. In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, Amen." The Space Marine knelt one knee and put his hand to his face helmet. "Praise you Lord Wong, for your love. I promise that when the time comes, I will accept your Lord as my God." The Jedi Lord nodded and smiled as he moved on.

"To my dear brother Sega Genesis, may the Lord's peace shine on you and that the Lord will protect you in the days to come, through crisis and danger, sickness and health, peace and war. Everything is as God's will and I pray that it is God's will that you will prosper for that is indeed the design of mankind, never to despair but to prosper. In Jesus name I pray, amen," the brown robed Jedi Knight bowed as the Jedi Lord released his blessings.

"Dear Lord, please continue to shine your light on Love3theEvil, may You send down your angels and seraphim to protect Love so that he will live a good and Godly life and that he will follow you and be your servant. In Jesus name I pray, amen."

"For my sister Ranma-girl, I pray for her spiritual journey to grow and that she will find you Lord one day at the end of that journey and declare that she is your daughter and be accepted into the kingdom of heaven. In Jesus name I pray, amen."

"Lord please look after my brother YHibiki and bestow your blessings upon him so that he will continue to live a good life with principles grounded in your commandments so that he will be filled with greatness that the Holy Spirit will find Its way into his heart and renew his body and soul. In Jesus mighty name I pray, amen.

Behind the rows, Nabiki was going to faint. _Oh Sweet Jesus, HE'S GOING TO PRAY FOR THREE THOUSAND JEDI INDIVIDUALLY! HE'S INSANE!"_ She looked at her sides but strangely none of the others seemed surprised or shock. The fathers she couldn't gauge their reactions as they were in between two Space Marines armed to the teeth, with explicit instructions to keep quiet unless it was a rational question, which the dynamic duo were too afraid to voice out.

She watched wearily as the hour wore on and the Jedi Lord prayed for everyone of the Jedi Guard. She listened as the he prayed for Jedi with the weirdest names like YHabiki, Bloodbadger, Holyknight, Sano-sama, Mega-Shadow, Materia-Blade, xochitlakran, Janus, Ryo Dragonfang, SlickRCBD, Jago Li Son Shiranui, Rorax, Angel 61991, Yuki Asao, Meia09, ecchan sama, Drakus, Dragon-game, Majibuu 7985, Renzuko, Kurt Baros, DC Westby, Jacob Spades, Tlong, Borg Rabbit, Zoko, Screaming Dean, Tehcrazykatlady and many others. Each prayer was somewhat identical, mostly Andy Wong praying for God to protect the said Jedi and that the Jedi would come to know and accept God as their Lord and saviour, in other words that they would become Christians in the end. But each was also unique as the Jedi Lord pointed out several parts of their lives that needed prayer and he also prayed for their special needs. Most took more than five minutes but some lasted only a minute.

_Am I really putting my trust into a bunch of religious fanatics? Or worse yet, a head honcho who is a religious fanatic? _Nabiki asked herself. She then took the opportunity to practice her meditation, in particular a technique that would allow herself to _sleep _while still awake relaxing certain portions of her brain. Little did she realise that the Jedi Captains were about to come to her row.

"To Dragonman 180, may the Lord bless you and the Lord is with you in all that you do. Be thankful for everything you have and appreciate the sanctity of life. Love thy neighbour, and thy family and all will be good. Never forget the Code and always live to serve others. In Jesus name I pray Amen."

"Heavenly Father I lift up to you Galen, that you may bless him and his family with peace, happiness, prosperity and most of all, a relationship with you Oh God. That he will remember that nothing happens by accident and that every good thing and bad thing is all part of your plan for him oh Lord, to make him a stronger and better person. Praise be to him who is a father and who loves his children and I pray that he will triumph in the coming war and win any battles he faces so that he will know your glory, your mercy and your grace. In Jesus name I pray, Amen."

"Dear God, I present to you your faithful servant Kakashizangel. Know that she has inspired me with her wisdom, that even her walk with you Lord has inspired me in my walk. I pray for the both of us will continue to grow closer to you Lord, and never forget your grace and mercy. For in the end, it is all about you and I pray that we never give in to pride or despair, and forget you Lord. In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, amen."

"To my dear Katie, I ask for the Lord's angels and seraphim to protect you and guide your ways in times of not only despair and sadness, but also in times of happiness and bountifulness. Know that He sent his only son to Earth for you and that you are special in his eyes. For the Lord works in mysterious way and I thank the Lord that you are here and that you are an inspiration to the Jedi Guard and to me as well. Praise the Lord for your blunt views which extend even to the Captains and myself. Thank you for pointing out our mistakes and I praise the Lord for blessing you with a voice and the willingness to use it. In Jesus most precious name I pray, Amen."

The Captains retinue now reached Kasumi. The brown haired girl was now completely overawed by the fact that it was now her turn, and that after praying for more than three thousand Jedi, it was now her turn. She bowed her head, unable to look upon the Jedi Lord's face.

She felt the hand of the Jedi Lord lay on her head and the other on her right shoulder. "Heavenly Father, praise be to You that You have given us yet another addition to the Jedi Guard. Kasumi when I see you, I see daylight breaking after a long night. That no matter how long or how dark the night is, day shall come again. _Au re entuluva. _Day shall come again. Great trials and tribulations await you but the Lord tells me that He has made you the mightiest of champions, that your love has glorified Him and that He is pleased with you. Compared to you Kasumi, I am unworthy and the Lord tells me that I will kneel before you in days to come. For you are a blessed woman and the Lord will provide for your needs in days to come. In Jesus most precious name I pray, Amen.

Kasumi was shaking with a feeling that she could not identify as she felt the love of the Jedi Lord and …. something else enter into her. She couldn't identify it but at that moment, her doubts had vanished and she was free of the fear that she still felt every time she rested and thought about the days to come. She knew there was a Chapel somewhere on the ship but she had yet to visit it during her training. She made it a point to ask Ranma later about his stand on Andy Wong's faith. But now, she did the only thing she thought appropriate. She prostrated herself before Jedi Lord Andy Wong Japanese style, who quickly bent down and prevented her from doing a full kowtow. "Do not do this to one such as I Kasumi. I am not a God although I won't deny his blessings, and I do not deserve an act of subservience of this magnitude. Know that you are forever in my heart and prayers Kasumi." With that he helped her stand up again and as she was about to wipe her tears on her sleeve, a handkerchief appeared in the Jedi Lord's hand and he handed it to her. She looked at it and gasped: for it was the very same one she had given to Andy, and it was still in pristine condition. "There you go, you need it more than I do now." The Jedi Lord smiled before moving to Nabiki.

The girl was actually half-asleep but as Andy Wong finished praying for Kasumi, Akane once again quickly stomped on her foot, jolting her awake and shooting her a glare. "What is wrong with you? He's still far away isn't he?" Nabiki whispered. Akane said nothing but indicated with her eyes to look in front of her. She paled and looked forward to see the huge hulking form of Andy Wong in front of her. "I, uh, I'm sorry Lord but…" she stammered.

"It's alright Nabiki," the Jedi Lord said gently. "It is quit arduous to stand here for more than twenty four hours. I assure you that Holy Communion will be much faster when we hold it."

"TWENTY FOUR HOURS!" Nabiki shouted, shocked that it had been that long since she had started dozing off.

The remaining Tendo sisters sighed. The ice-queen of Nerima was definitely losing her cool.

"Bear in mind Nabiki, that we're still in the Hall of Illusion. The time warp still applies here. You will still have your day off," Andy Wong assured her. She calmed herself and was very annoyed at herself for showing emotions. _Maybe I do need the vacation after all_.

"Heavenly Father, I pray for my sister here Nabiki, that whatever feelings of fear and inadequacies she might feel, you will take away from her. Lord I ask that you bless this sister and heal the scars of her flesh and mind and that she will remember the love You have for her, and that no matter how dirty or how lowly she feels about herself, she will know that You will always love her. And that we, the Jedi Guard who all serve You Lord in one way or another, also lover her and we will humble ourselves and aid her in becoming a better person in your eyes Lord. Nabiki I pray that you confide your fears to the Lord and your family, for know that they are hear for you. Know that nothing is impossible in the Lord's eyes and that you can and you WILL overcome your weaknesses. In Jesus might name I pray amen."

"Akane, what can I say? When I look at you, I see a hammer. A hammer that tempers steel and shapes it into the shape that the wielder wields it to be. I sense that you are the hammer and God is the blacksmith that will wield you to forge a great destiny for you, your sisters, your fiancée, your father and your friends. If you are the hammer that tempers the steel, Ranma is the anvil where the place is steel is placed. Both cannot function on its own for the anvil is the foundation upon which the destiny must be placed before it can be shaped by the hammer. Lord I pray that the love between you and Ranma will persevere and that the both of you will not only survive all trials and tribulations but emerge stronger and that in the end, you will both know that your fortunes and sufferings, are ordained by God who loves you and seeks to make both of you better people. May the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit protect you and aid you in the coming conflict and battles. Amen," the Jedi Lord prayed.

He then proceeded with Ukyo, Ryoga and then the rest of the Nerima Wrecking Crew. Surprisingly, he took a long time praying for Mousse, mostly praying that Mousse will let go his infatuation with Shampoo and pursue her the normal way and that he would be a useful addition to his tribe in the coming war and of course, that he would also know God and Jesus as the Lord and Saviour. No one was left out and the very last on the line was Nodoka, who in addition to praying for a renewal in mother-son relationship with Ranma, also wished her plenty of grandbabies. This prompted a squeal from her and a slight blush in the otherwise impassive face of Captain Saotome Ranma.

Having finished praying for everyone in the room except the Jedi Captains, the Jedi Captains then walked back to the stage where once again, Andy Wong took the podium.

"May the Jedi Code be your armour against the false teachings of chaos. Know that in the end, our largest turbolasers, our lightsabers, our power armours, our guns and our swords are all useless when the hand that wields them is weak. Prepare yourself for the coming battle and do not stray from the Code. If not I will administer swift justice upon you. Go now and God be with you. Dismissed."

_To be continued_

To those who have listed my story in their Favourites and Alert list, I apologise for not personally praying for you. This goes to those reviewers whom I have not dedicated a paragraph of prayer to. Special thanks goes to Borg rabbit, Zoko, Ryo Dragonfang and Happosai-sama for giving extremely constructive criticism in the past. I'm sorry for not offering a personal prayer but I have been blessed with so many reviwers that if I were to continue writing prayers, it would be well after New Year and this is supposed to be a Christmas chapter. I beg your patience and forgiveness then.

I pray for the blessings of God be upon the rest of you and that He will touch your lives and fill your hearts with the joy of the Holy Spirit as he did to me exactly one year ago on Christmas Day 25 December 2005. I can't give presents to all of you but I believe that Christmas is not about giving material items but sharing of the good news. Know that I was a Buddhist and an anti-Christian for most of my life before I finally grew weary and let Jesus come into my life. I've mentioned this before somewhere but the progression of this story is also linked to my journey of faith. When you read about Andy Wong, you are reading of my life and my understanding of God as well, minus the part of being a thirty thousand year old immortal and Jedi or course.

If you have any objections of me putting your names as miscellaneous Jedi characters, please inform me and I will remove them. I really hope you don't object to me giving a personal prayer though.

God bless all of you and have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

P.S: I know, I mentioned that the Tendo sisters have been training in time warp for three months or three days in the real world while Ukyo in Chapter 20 has already gone through 7 days of training, or seven months according to the Tendo sisters. For the moment, please assume that this prayer session happened in between Ukyo's training. I will get to amending that chapter soon. I don't want to change the timeline of the Tendo sisters as I want to give them a day off and get back to Earth for awhile.

PPS: Happosai Sama, I'm truly sorry but your name is the name of the arch-enemy of this story so I couldn't include you in the story.  As penance, I give you this prayer hear and now.

To my Lord and Saviour, I pray that you bless me fellow brother Happosai that he will be blessed with a peace, prosperity and above all, the gift of the Holy Spirit. May you renew his relationships with his family, his friend, his colleagues and all his acquaintances so that he may be blessed with happiness and will come to know the power of your mercy and grace Lord. I believe you have great plans for my brother and that you will reveal it to him in due time for your love is eternal and all encompassing. In Jesus name I pray, amen.


	26. Chapter 22: Scheming and tears

**Author's rants**

Damn, its been a tough month and a half. Note to everyone studying accounting. Don't ever get seconded to KPMG Malaysia if you ever get into auditing work. I don't want to name my department so just avoid the firm and country altogether. :P

As usual, I have to say that I don't own any of the stories and shows that I've used for my story. This story is not for sale but for the enjoyment of all.

For those who have felt the pace is slowing to a crawl, just bear with me for a few more chapters before everything hits the fan.

**Chapter 22: Scheming and Tears**

Location: Nerima Ward, Tokyo, Japan

During the few days that the Nerima Wrecking Crew left Nerima and took up residence at the _Destiny's Forge_, two squads of tactical Jedi Guards watched over their homes as well as the whole of Japan, vigilant against the signs of chaos or the emergence of Happosai's agents. The Jedi Guard came from all walks of life and three of their number had been housewives like Kasumi before the terrible invasion of the Yuuzhan Vong began. In addition to their duties to guard the home, the three women, two humans from Tatooine and Corruscant and a Mon Calamari female took turns to clean the house in the absence of the Tendo family. So when the eldest Tendo sister returned to her home, she found the place spotlessly clean and immaculate. Everything was as it was when she left, which was three months in her reckoning, and her heart was gladdened that her home was still there.

She had not said the sinner's pledge yet but she found herself praying to God more and more in the past three months. She gave thanks now that her home was still here and prayed for the rest of the Nerima residents, knowing the damage and loss of life that happened only three days ago in the reckoning of the real world. She was not privy to the full report that had been compiled by the 2nd Division Scouts but according to Ranma, more than 400 martial artist were dead, not counting the 300 students at Nerima. It grieved her that she would never see Hyosuke's or Daisuke's goofy faces again, but this time, her training had erased her doubt that it was her fault. It baffled most of the Jedi Captains except the Jedi Lord that till now, Kasumi's stance against Happosai had not changed: to bring him to justice but not murder as Neji would have advocated.

Tendo Nabiki was another matter.

The middle Tendo sister was in her room now, rummaging through her college books. Somehow the days where she would wake up and resume her Ice-Queen activities seemed so far away now. Once she would wake up groggily in the morning, only fully awake after drinking Kasumi's special brew and then would survey her so-called Nerima network for every opportunity to make money. She was especially proud of her efforts, which unknown to her sisters even indebted some members of the Yakuza to her network. More than once she had used the Yakuza allies to threaten money out of her debtors although it never actually went to the point of physical violence. But she knew she could never use them again. Thanks to Chaplain Ardias' interrogations, the Jedi Guard knew all her secrets. But what disgusted and turned Nabiki's stomach was that it was through these Yakuza that her fate had been sealed and led to her torment at the hands of Herb's minions. She fought against the memory of her torture but could not stop the pangs of fear and humiliation. They not only humiliated her but shattered her belief that everything could be settled in a contract. The signature of two agreed parties that should have protected her family, completely shattered when she was gagged, blindfolded and then stripped right after shaking hands with Herb to signify the closure of the deal.

Tears of rage built up in her, rage that she had bottled up for later use when she had learnt the techniques of the Jedi Guard. That she had made little progress irked her and she wondered why she was only trained by Neji and Jaina. For that matter, she had yet to see the Jedi Lord in the training despite his promise that he would personally train the Tendo sisters. Three months of training and she still had to go through the Codex Interrogation that made her the target of blackmail and information. Now even Neji refused to train Nabiki further and Jaina had frustratingly done the same.

_Flashback_

_"NO, I DON'T WANT HIM DEAD. I WANT HIM TO LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER WITH ME SUCKING HIS COCK, KASUMI BREAST FEEDING HIM AND AKANE MASSAGING HIM! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU SUPER FREAK? OF COURSE I WANT HIM TO DIE AND NICE AND SLOW!" Nabiki shouted into the darkness, constantly looking for the red glare of the Chaplain's Death Mask eyes. Instead of succumbing to despair and helplessness, this time she responded with anger at Ardias' questions._

_"My my, such vehement words indeed. It makes me wonder if you and your sister Kasumi are in anyway related. Are you sure that your father has been faithful to his wife?" the mocking voice of Cypher's vice-captain echoed in the darkness._

_Nabiki sneered. "I am not Kasumi. I am Nabiki and I'm not going to delude myself that we can all live happily ever after. If she continues to delude herself, I can't do anything about it. The best I can do is take action with my abilities. While she was staying at home cooking miso, I was out there making money for the family to survive."_

_"And this makes you better?"_

_"Obviously someone who lives in a place where money doesn't rule wouldn't understand a middle-class Japanese family trying to survive in Japan where prices increase everyday and my useless father doesn't do anything. What do you know about poverty and the fear of losing your house?"_

_"Be careful Tendo Nabiki. You thread on thin ice now. You are an intelligent woman. I have no doubt that you have memorised the Jedi Code by now. Why can't you understand the need to discard your petty vendetta against Herb?" Ardias asked._

_"Oh really? Can you? What about releasing your stupid quest for your Emperor's forgiveness considering what you've already done to save the galaxy?" Nabiki said._

_What happened next was too fast for Nabiki to see. The moment she finished her sentence, she saw the massive Space Marine Chaplain and Captain Jaina Solo in front of her. The Space Marine's right fist was held by Jaina's left hand and appeared to be aimed at Nabiki while Jaina stood with her back to Nabiki. Despite being only slightly taller than Nabiki, the 3rd Division Captain seemed to have no problem blocking the fist of the two metre tall Space Marine._

_It appeared she had struck a nerve in the Space Marine, who had rushed to smack her only to be stopped by Jaina. All of which was done in the blink of an eye._

_"Vice-Captain Ardias, that's enough for now. Retire for the night," Jaina commanded, her steely voice even more intimidating than Ardias' and the Space Marine broke his battle stance and bowed before moving away, leaving Jaina and Nabiki alone in the spotlight._

_"And they call me narrow minded," Nabiki sneered._

_Jaina head whipped around and viewed her contemptuously. "You have a lot of nerve assuming you are better than your sister. And it's not like you have not learnt about the history of the Fallen Angels. Insulting their Emperor? Don't mistake their tolerance for a license to joke or insult their leader."_

_"Oh yeah, then why isn't their devotion to their Emperor any more stupid than me wanting to rape and torture Herb? Their fanatic loyalty has already made them commit atrocities heinous by Jedi Guard standards. Yet I don't see Andy Wong scolding them for praying to their Emperor, especially when Christians are supposed to abhor all other idols."_

_Jaina slapped her forehead. "Frankly, I would worry more about your own situation before judging others. The Fallen Angels have already shed some of their more fanatical practices to learn the Jedi Code and still maintain their proud traditions and quest for the Emperor's forgiveness. As a matter of fact, many of them want to accept the Christian Faith but by their honour, cannot do so without seeking their Emperor's forgiveness first. But you are becoming a vengeful vigilante with no other objective other than plain old revenge."_

_Nabiki folded her arms. "Unlike everyone else, I'm more concerned about the present. Once Happosai and Herb are dead, you can drill whatever moral lessons into me. We're wasting valuable time having these **talks** while Herb and Happosai are making plans to destroy us. Don't lie to me, I know you are worried about those two and if they can worry the Jedi Guard, you expect me to be calm about it?"_

_"You foolish girl, even after the lessons in history, you can't see the importance of honour in your actions? That the end does NOT justify the means? Lord Wong was not joking when he stated that our powers and technologies can be used for both ultimate good and ultimate evil. Even a laser blaster from our arsenal is enough to imbalance the technology of this world. And we're not about to provide it to someone who is willing to use it for his or her own ends without a thought to rules. What about your promise to Neji?" Jaina asked._

_"That was before I read about his Sith Lord past. Dear, dear, and HE is telling me about honour. What about his? He definitely didn't keep up his end of the bargain when he became a Jedi Guard," Nabiki smirked as she recalled the history journal maintained in the Jedi Guard network which painstakingly recorded every battle and event that happened in the last 15 years since their formation. This included Neji's initial entry into the Jedi Guard and his subsequent rebellions against the Jedi Lord during that turbulent period._

_"If you read further, you would have discovered that Neji repented and now is only second to Captain Hitsugaya in adherence and belief in the code. Why do you think even HE doesn't want to teach now? Does our military history mean nothing to you?"_

_"What I see is a dozen places where you could have achieved total victory but didn't because it didn't fit into your Jedi Code," Nabiki said, referring to a battle where three squads of Jedi Guard refused to close the gate of a fortress until all the soldiers retreating from the Yuuzhan Vong onslaught were inside rather than close it earlier and deny the Yuuzhan Vong entry. The Yuuzhan Vong followed the retreating soldiers closely and many entered the fortress, resulting in a brutal fight with half the Jedi Guard dead before the fortress door could be closed._

_"Yes well, at least I can wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and still see Jaina Organa Solo rather than a murderer and betrayer. Better let a thousand guilty men go free, than an innocent one wrongly convicted," Jaina said._

_"To each person his own Jaina. Now why don't you get it into your thick head that I don't need this morality crap now?"_

_The end result was a fuming Jaina who left Nabiki alone in the spotlight. Nabiki smirked. At last, I'm on familiar ground, negotiating for training, she thought to herself._

_End flashback_

After that last interrogation, Ardias returned to tell her that the Jedi Lord had decided to give the Tendo sisters shore leave. Following a night's rest, she was woken up in the morning at 5am and attended the Jed Guard assembly, during which the Jedi Lord Andy Wong blessed the entire army of three thousand and fifty four Jedi Guards. The ordeal took more than a day but fortunately the time warp technique was used so they only used up less than an hour in real time, leaving the rest of the day free for them. After being dismissed by the Jedi Lord, the Tendo sisters took the opportunity to embrace each other and catch up.

_Flashback_

_"It's so good to see you again ne-chan. How are you holding up?" Kasumi asked._

_Her Ice-Queen mask back into place, she merely brushed it off saying, "Like hell Kasumi. The shit these Jedi are making me go through is probably worse than Principal Kuno and his hair brained schemed curriculum."_

_Akane frowned slightly. She really didn't like Nabiki bad mouthing the Jedi, as she yet to see evidence that would make the Jedi Guard anything less than respectable and noble. "One-Chan, we'll have to discuss this later. First things first, where do you want to go"_

_Nabiki shrugged. "Let's go home. I've been wondering what's happening in Nerima since we left."_

_"Is that wise? Ranma and I heard some of the Vice-Captains are coming with us but I don't think it's a good idea for Ranma to go back to Nerima soon," Akane said._

_"For once I agree with Nabiki, Akane-chan. More importantly, I want to see Daisuke and Hiroshi's parents. At least someone must know that Ranma wasn't responsible for the… massacre," Kasumi spoke up._

_The middle Tendo sighed. 'Leave it to Kasumi to always think of others before herself,' she thought. _

_Ranma walked up to them. 'I concur Kasumi, I want to give my respects to those two as well.'_

_"Thanks Ranma. Are you sure we don't need to bring anything else?" Kasumi asked. They had all reverted back to their Nerima clothes but carried small duffel bags that contained their Jedi robes. _

_"I can't see why we're not allowed any weapons, seeing as we've already trained. Don't tell me you're going to follow us everyone including the bath. Don't think just because you've seen us all naked gives you the license to peep at us now," Nabiki said._

_Before Ranma could reply, Ardias came up to them. The Space Marine had shed his power armour and was clad in clothes that made him look like a bikie from the movie Terminator, except that he wore no sunglasses. "Brother Captain, the transport has been prepared and Vice-Captain Lowbacca is ready to pilot the transport. Scout Team Four has ensured that the Nerima High School Grounds are secure for landing. We're ready to depart."_

_"Thank you brother. You know your assignment once we've touched down?" Ranma asked._

_"Yes Captain. I've studied your culture extensively and am prepared to undertake the task given to me," Ardias said._

_"Wait a minute, he is coming with us?" Nabiki said incredulously. "Oh come on, this guy stands out like Britney in a nun's suit!"_

_"Well, this Britney nun is going to be your bodyguard from now on. Wherever you go, he goes except your bedroom and bathroom. And don't worry; it'll only be for today."_

_Ranma quickly entered the transport's ramp before Nabiki could scream further protests._

_End Flashback_

She picked up a photo of the Nerima Crew when they were trapped in Prince Toma's island. She smiled at the chance they all had to becoming a queen with riches, servants and an especially young and naïve king to manipulate. Not to mention a powerful army of freaks to protect them. Once again, she wished she was back in a time when things were simpler and all she had to do was wait for the next day to cash in.

All of which changed the moment Ranma left Nerima. If she had known what she would go through before Ranma had left, she would have locked Ranma and Akane in a vault and throw away the key until they married.

She had elected not to go to the funeral, never really being close to Daisuke and Hiroshi. Moreover, she had only gone to the graveyard once when her mother died and she had no desire to go to it again. She sighed as she sifted through her e-mails for the last three days. Miraculously, none of her informants were dead and her information network was still active. Mostly it was rumours and gossip which was of course currently all about the Nerima Massacre as the event was being called by the media now. Her eyes then narrowed at one particular e-mail.

"ARDIAS!" she yelled for the Space Marine. "YOU CAN COME IN THE ROOM NOW!"

The door to her bedroom opened and the huge Space Marine stood at the doorway. As usual, the expression on his face was far from pleasant. "As long as we're in private or in the company of Jedi Guards, you will address me as Vice-Captain or Chaplain, is that understood? This may be a leave of absence from your training but it doesn't stop the fact that you are still a Jedi Padarawan or Apprentice. You will therefore respect and adhere to the command structure of the Jedi Guard."

"Yeah yeah vice-captain., but for today, you are also my bodyguard wherever I go. And right now, I say we go to see my informant. This time, you make sure that I don't get kidnapped," Nabiki said nonchalantly as she applied the last of her make-up. She sported a green halter top as well as blue jeans and carried a white bag which Ardias noticed carried the name Prada.

Ardias' eyes narrowed at Nabiki's clothing and attitude but he only said, "I will follow my orders. I pray you will not abuse Lord Wong's command. Now tell me where you want to go so that I can inform _Destiny's Forge._"

"Believe it or not, this isn't the only place where you can see weird and crazy things. And don't worry; this informant doesn't even know he is an informant. He's just a foolish guy who accepts everyone at face value. It's not my fault he is so gullible in providing information," Nabiki smirked as she walked past Ardias who stood at the doorway.

The Vice-Captain sighed and promptly followed the ice-queen.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

The funeral parlours were full that day, as they had been for the last three days as families buried their dead and mourned. In that afternoon alone, there were ten funerals conducted in the manner of Christians in the graveyard at Nerima District. One of these was a combined one, for two families to bury their children, who had been friends for so long, it seemed wrong for them to be parted even in death. Their graves were set side by side and dozens of family members came to grieve and say their last goodbyes. The mood contrasted sharply with the bright sunny day, when the birds were chirping and there was not a cloud in the sky.

Akane, Kasumi and Ranma in his woman half watched silently from behind the gravestones further from the funeral. Kasumi's eyes were wet and she cried softly as the priest talked about Hiroshi's and Daisuke's lives, how they lived a joyful and blessed life. Akane tried not to shed tears but it came nevertheless. Seeing their coffins only nailed in the reality of their situation and she unconsciously gripped for Ranma's hand.

As for Ranma herself, she despised herself for being too jaded to cry. She had seen too much death and suffering to even cry anymore and somehow, it felt wrong that she could be so emotionless seeing two friends being buried without shedding a tear. In fact, she always regarded those two as special because in all their years of acquaintance, they were one of the few who never really took advantage of him. They were his constant companions when Akane wasn't there and if anything else, a source of amusement and laughter. They may have envied him for his martial arts prowess and ability to attract anything female but he was also envious of their normal lives, as normal as a person associated with him could be.

Now because of that association, they were dead. Ranma fought to keep back the feelings of hatred and anger that was the bane of a Jedi Guard's discipline. Feeling Akane's hand gripping hers, even when in girl form, helped a great deal. She may not have been a powerful Force sensitive but she was still susceptible to the lure of the Dark Side of the Force. She looked at Akane and her tear filled eyes were enough for Ranma. It was as though Akane was crying for both Ranma and herself. She squeezed her hands back then.

The funeral service finally ended and the coffins were lowered into the ground. Those present at the funeral took turns to throw dirt into the coffin and the crowd eventually dispersed into a fleet of cars. The parents of Daisuke and Hiroshi, Mr and Mrs. Tanaka along with Mr and Mrs Kobayashi were among the last two leave.

_It's now or never, _Kasumi thought as she lead the group to the parents.

The two elderly couples were about to enter their cars when Kasumi called them. They looked up to behold Kasumi, Akane and Ranma walking up to them, each holding a bouquet of white flowers. Their eyes then widened as they realised who Ranma was, initially not recognising her as her girl half had grown and aged substantially from the petite redhead they had seen before.

"Uncle, Auntie, please hear us out first. I believe Ranma has something to say," Kasumi said quickly as she noticed the look of recognition dawn on their faces.

Ranma instantly kneeled before them with Akane following suit.

"Respected elders, I wish to extend my condolences for the deaths of your sons. I was deeply fond of Daisuke and Hiroshi and was happy and proud to call them friends. Please accept these as a token of my grief, as well as a plea for forgiveness for letting this come to pass," Ranma said.

Mrs. Tanaka went up to Ranma and peered at her closely. Her eyes looked red from crying for many days now and Ranma's heart went out to her. The old woman was supposedly only forty but she had as much white hair as a sixty year old.

"My dear Ranma, how you have grown," she finally answered as she cupped Ranma's face and started to examine the lines of her face.

Inwards, everyone released their breaths. For once, the blame was not laid squarely on Ranma's shoulder.

"I can't believe it, Ranma's actually a grown woman," Mrs. Kobayashi piped up, suddenly appearing and, to Ranma's embarrassment, joined Mrs. Tanaka in holding and examining Ranma's face as though it was a piece of sculpture. The fathers were also astonished at Ranma's features but kept their distance.

"Umm, I'm flattered that you think I'm a grown woman but for your information, I still regard myself as a guy, and I plan to marry Akane as one," Ranma said in the middle of the cheek pinching.

Now this statement had all four elders in shock. "I'm sorry Ranma, I thought you said that you would marry Akane. But that's impossible, you have no love other than martial arts and food," Mr. Kobayashi said in shock.

"If it were not for the situation now, I would be shouting out loud my love for Akane for the whole town to hear. Unfortunately I can't Uncle, and I wish it were other circumstances than now," Ranma said softly.

Kasumi then said, "Uncle, Auntie, I would like you to know that Ranma had nothing to do with Daisuke's and Hiroshi's death. My sister was with him when the attacks happened and if it were not for him, many more would be dead at the University. Nor are the other 5 foreigners the media is portraying as the cause of the attacks."

Mr. Tanaka, who was the tallest of the parents then walked up to Ranma. "Nevertheless, trouble follows you around like bees to pollen. So far, you have borne the brunt of it but this time, it has taken the lives of others. What do you say to that?"

If this was said to Ranma two years ago according to the Tendo timeline, he would have reacted badly and become depressed. After all, Ranma never shirked from accepting blame even when it wasn't his fault. That was the old Ranma and the one standing before them was 15 year older now.

"I say Mr. Tanaka, that I will do my utmost to administer justice on those responsible for the attacks. I'm sorry I cannot divulge what I know nor what I'm going to do but rest assured, one day you will see the face of your sons murderers face justice."

"And how is a punk martial artist like you going to do that?" Mr. Kobayashi sneered.

Ranma then stood up from her kneeling position and looked at Mr. Kobayashi eye to eye. Then she changed into his male form right before their eyes, causing their mouths to drop.

"I apologise to say that I cannot reveal what I and the Tendos are going to do. Let's just say that we have friends now, the same friends who helped save the rest of Nerima when it was attacked and even now are being vilified for it. They are not enemies, they are my allies and friends and together, we are going to bring Happosai to justice."

"Ranma, how did you change without water?" Mr. Tanaka said in shock. The fact that Ranma's face looked terribly old with many faint battle scars were not lost on him, nor was the fact that Ranma's blue eyes had lost its youthful innocence

The Jedi Captain shook his head. _And everyone says I have short attention span._

"That is irrelevant Mr. Tanaka. What is important is that you know I'm not responsible for the attacks and that I'm going to do something about that. If you still think I should be arrested, the police are only a phone call away. I won't resist if you call them. Unlike Happosai, I still have honour and dignity and I will live and die by them," Ranma said.

Mrs. Tanaka then stood between her husband and Ranma. "Enough of this dear. All of us know that Ranma would never willingly be the cause of our children's deaths. For now, let us be glad that Ranma is here and I for one, am glad that the best martial artist and if I may say so, a Nerima hero, has returned to marry Akane. At least that's one issue I won't ever have to guess again."

"I agree. I don't know what happened to Ranma for the past two years but there are certain things that never change and the prime one in Ranma is that he always protects the weak and never fights those who can't fight. Well, unless they give him a reason to anyway," Mrs. Kobayashi added her two cents.

The pig-tailed martial artist was touched. "Thank you Mrs. Kobayashi, Mrs. Tanaka for your understanding." He then turned to the graves. "If it's OK, I would like to pay my last respects now," he said softly.

The four elders bowed their heads. "Of course Ranma, and thank you for seeing us today. I wish you and Akane a bright future….," she couldn't bear it anymore and started crying again. Her husband was distraught but supported her as they moved towards the car.

Ranma, Akane and Kasumi then moved to the newly buried graves. Kasumi took the three bunches of flowers and arranged them equally on each grave. Words failed them as they finally look at the inscriptions on the tombstones.

Tanaka Daisuke

Playful and foolish, he always brought a smile to everyone.

Kobayashi Hiroshi

Buffoon and Fool, a source of happiness to all who knew him.

Simple inscriptions that summarised the life of Ranma's friends in a nutshell.

_In the end, you were the lucky ones. My tombstone would have filled an entire wall, and all filled with insults from my hundred rivals and fiancées, _Ranma thought.

Never one about thinking of his own death, he finally considered the thought of it and it frightened him how people in his own world would remember him. In the war against the Yuuzhan Vong, he simply didn't dwell on it, more focused on preserving the living to fight another day. He didn't care about honour or martial prowess then, or even how he would be remembered, focusing instead on saving lives and the actual battles themselves. Moreover, Akane and the Nerima Wrecking Crew weren't around to compound his worries.

Now in his own universe, with his Nerima friends and family around him about to be affected by war conditions, he was mortally afraid of the future, not to mention his own immortal soul should he fail.

'_Calm yourself Ranma, do not give in to fear. You are strong. Akane is strong and now even the Lord Wong says that Kasumi is strong. Always in motion is the future. Do not dwell always in the future when the present needs your personal attention and action. Dear God, I know Lord Wong will scold me for doing this but if you truly are the one God above all creation of not only this universe but all the other universes, grant me this prayer. I want the love between Akane and me to grow. I would marry her and join my body and my soul with hers as is your design for humans. Let us all survive the trials you would pit us through, and I promise that I will submit to your will like your servant, Lord Wong,' _for the first time in his life, Ranma prayed. In response, the floodgates finally opened and Ranma finally cried together with Kasumi and Akane. Both girls were startled at seeing Ranma finally crack and quickly moved to his side to support him.

There were no more words to be said, and for the next hour, Ranma hugged the two Tendos sisters to him as the three silently grieved for their friends.

To be continued….

**Author's notes**

One point that I thought I had to resolve was the fact that I killed off Hiroshi and Daisuke early in the story. Those two I recalled were actually close to Ranma and I wanted a chapter to show what's going on in Ranma's mind for once instead of him coming off as an invincible Captain who has seen everything the galaxy can throw at him and is completely confident.

Alas, I'm not done with Nabiki yet, somehow of all the Ranma characters, I really despise her and later I realised, with everything I put her through, it's more likely to make her more desperate and cruel rather than turn a new leaf which I implied earlier. Still, I really do intend for the main characters to live happily ever after, so whatever I put my characters through, remember that fact.


	27. Status update

**Update on my story**

Hi everyone, I'm sad to say that this isn't the latest chapter, but to those who have been waiting for so long, I feel you have the right to know what's going rather than wait till the end of time for this story to end.

Going through a difficult patch of my life now, mostly career related and somehow, I can't concentrate on what I'm going to do next in the story. There's a whole lot of things I want to do, unfortunately it involves more crossovers which I promised I won't overdo. After reviewing my past chapters, I also wish to add more characters for the Jedi as well as merge some universes. Now I'm in a bloody dilemma because unless it's a cross over, I can't think of a way of currently expanding the current story line, which as of now, covers the training of the Nerima wrecking crew by various Jedi Guard, Nabiki's turmoil and the eventually branching off to Onegai Sensei.

Things I screwed up and now hard to change:

Jedi Lord Andy Wong's vice captain. At the time I wrote Chapter 17, I couldn't think of a vice-captain for him and therefore said he had none. Big mistake. Current ideas I'm entertaining:

Shayera Hol: Hawkgirl from Justice League Animated series. Exactly as the character in the series and I was so impressed with her character when I was introduced to the series. Her storyline is yet another tragic one which would provide Andy Wong ample excuse to recruit her.

Leonidas (Own character, a gargoyle from the Disney Animated series **_Gargoyles_**. One of two Disney series I still respect, the other being Kim Possible)

Addition of new powerful villains that are non-demon based. It occurred to me that its just too cheesy or simple to just counter the Jedi's power with demonic and black magic. Ranma's universe simply doesn't have enough of that sort of powerful character save for Herb, Happosai (both of which are currently in use) and Saffron himself, who has been killed by Ranma already. Now I've got writer's block on how to get on with the training as well as the preparation from the bad guy's side.

Even my earlier chapters indicating that the true Dark Angels might find Destiny's Forge and attack the Jedi Guard seem to reflect my lack of imagination.

Sigh, may seem like pretty silly reasons to all of you, some of you would probably say **_"Its your story, write any way you like it."_** I wish I wasn't so self conscious of what other people might say then maybe I would even be stressed over this silly matter of fan fiction generation.

Anyway, I'm sorry for the long wait and I hope at least this update will satisfy your confusion as to why I haven't updated in a long time. It's not the fact I don't have enough ideas, I got a ton of them. Problem is I'm making a Ranma fan fiction and I have to tie it to Ranmaverse which I have massive problems. Everytime I think of an idea, it keeps going to the adventures of Jedi Lord and the Jedi Guard rather than the current situation of Nerima. I'm sorry guys, but I'm afraid I need your input again. Something to nudge me in the right direction.

For those of you all who are Christians, pray that I find peace and time to spend with God in my heart. For those who are not, pray for me anyway, because I really hate my life right now.

Hope this posting doesn't get banned as it is more forum related.


	28. Chapter 23: Information is power

YES, MY CREATIVE JUICES ARE BACK!

Special thanks to JaketheSheepy, xochitlakran, and Galen for your support and advice. So without any further ado….

**Chapter 23: Information is power**

After the funeral, Kasumi, Ranma and Akane decided to take a walk around Nerima to survey what else had happened. The town was now strangely quiet though it was not surprisingly quiet given that nearly everyone in the ward lost someone dear to him.

"Wait a minute, isn't that Kuno's mansion?" Akane said in disbelief at the plot of land that used to be the Kuno estate.

What used to be a normal albeit large compound that contained a large house, greenhouse and pond had been transformed into a veritable fortress. The stone walls now had barbed wires and at the four corners of the house, were actually watchtowers with two guards in each one. Both were armed with what Ranma saw were air guns. The house was even surrounded by a moat now in which swam Kodachi's pet alligator, Mr. Turtle.

"Uh hello, Turtle-san," Kasumi beamed she knelt by the side of the moat to greet Mr. Turtle's head.

Ranma and Akane's jaws dropped as the alligator allowed its snout to be petted by Kasumi. _Wait a minute, I didn't see animal empathy in Kasumi's training schedule and Lord Wong hasn't started his part yet, _Ranma thought to himself.

To add to their astonishment, Kasumi promptly extracted a lump of meat from her knapsack and promptly fed it straight into the alligator's maw, which opened politely for her to insert the meat and waited until her hand was clear before chomping down on the tasty morsel.

"Halt, who dares trespass the sacred territory of the Kuno family!" a familiar rant was heard before a shadow loomed over the three. They looked up to see the rapidly descending form of Kuno from the sky, with his bokken held high for an overhead swing. To Ranma's astonishment however, Kuno's face immediately changed as he saw them and in an instant, he was comically flapping his arms in an attempt to fight gravity and at the same time, avoid landing on the trio.

The three stepped aside but Ranma levitated him just as his face kissed the ground. Only then did Ranma drop him and he was immediately on his feet. "Saotome Ranma, you should know well not to surprise me like that. Fortune is on your side that the gods favoured me to prevent my untimely death at the hands of high impact to the ground. Please do not do so again."

If Ranma and Akane were anime characters, there would have been a huge sweat drop at the back of their heads. '_Damn, looks like he is still insane, just slightly less. Compared to what he was though, much better,' _thought Ranma.

Kasumi as usual, looked unperturbed. "Oh my, it appears that you've made a lot of renovations recently," she said while regarding the _**fortifications**_ of Kuno's house.

The still deranged samurai wannabe scowled. "Yes, the vile bandits tore up the neighbourhood and damn well nearly wrecked the entire house. I never thought I would say this but for once, I'm glad my sister has an unhealthy fascination with chemistry and pharmaceuticals. Although I'm sure my righteous fury would be enough to repel the bandits, in the end she intervened by showering our assailants with countless black roses, all of which were laced with sleeping gas. Fortunately, she's tested most of her concoctions on me so much that I've developed immunity to most of them. As I'm sure you have as well."

"Oh, then how do you explain the few times where your sister … incapacitated you during our fights?" Ranma asked.

Kuno shrugged. "She uses different ones every time. That time, she used some types that I've already smelt so I wasn't affected. Which reminds me, Tendo Akane, you smell especially sweet today. Dare I even hope that this is a visit to ask me for a date?" he said as he suddenly moved himself close to Akane, almost to the point of touching her.

A vein threatened to pop in her head but a look from Ranma prevented her from hammering Kuno into Lower Earth Orbit ("LEO"). She then noticed that Kuno wasn't actually physically touching her yet and it was only his words that were so irksome. After 3 months of anger management, she was learning that words alone did not justify violence no matter how insulting they are.

_'How does Kasumi do this?' _she thought.

"We just came from the cemetery Kuno. We all dressed out best today and that might account for the perfume Akane, Kasumi and even I am wearing. Believe me when I say passing by your house wasn't on the agenda. Nevertheless, I suppose I should be glad that you are alive. How is Kodachi, your dad and Sasuke?" Akane asked.

As if on cue, the all too familiar laugh was heard.

"Oh ho ho ho ho, Ranma-sama, you are alive," Kodachi gracefully landed next to Ranma and promptly gave him a hug. Ranma nearly threw her away but noted that her hug wasn't a Shampoo class glomp and to his astonishment, tears were actually coming out of her eyes. _'OK, so her love for me wasn't that psychotic after all.' _Ranma never thought that Kodachi would actually have feelings for him, and had always assumed that she genuinely treated him as a prized toy and nothing else. While the same might be true for Akane, Ukyo, Shampoo and virtually every other girl after his affection, they at least targeted for his love in return. He began to feel slightly guilty for bringing the hammer on them previously and effectively telling Kodachi to get out of his life. _'Damn it, sometimes I wish I was born telepathic like Hitsugaya. Wait a minute, he was in their minds, he should have been able to know this," _Ranma thought.

Akane was also astonished at the rare, no, the never before seen spectacle of Kodachi showing genuine emotion. She took the opportunity to practice her anger management training as the familiar green monster threatened to appear seeing Kodachi actually touch Ranma and then Ranma, with a look of bewilderment similar to Akane herself, awkwardly patter Kodachi's back. Fortunately Kodachi wasn't wearing her gymnastic leotard but was modestly dressed in a white blouse, black slacks and sandals.

"Gee Kodachi, thanks for caring. It'll take more than a few punks to take me down," Ranma said.

"Language Ranma. I thought Lord Wong taught you to talk properly," Kasumi chided.

"If it pleases you, we never did get the opportunity to welcome you back to Nerima. I offer you my hospitality in my home. I believe Sasuke has recovered enough to serve us now," Kuno said.

"Oh my, is there anything the matter with Sasuke?" Kasumi asked.

"Oh nothing much, he just lost an eye that's all," Kuno said nonchalantly.

Ranma shook his head. In the grand scheme of things, losing an eye was probably better than losing his life. Sasuke may have been an incompetent ninja but by Nerima standards, Ranma judged him to be one of the saner characters out there, probably on equal footing with Kasumi save that Kasumi always acted oblivious.

"Please Ranma-sama. I've thought a lot of what we're put you through and we would like to say sorry in our own small way," Kodachi said, still hugging Ranma. "I promise you here and now, nothing we give you will be poisoned or otherwise altered to hurt either you nor Akane and Kasumi."

Ranma looked at Akane who merely shrugged. "OK Ranma. Besides you should probably employ your expertise to Sasuke."

"OK then Kodachi, Kuno-sempai. Let's have a drink shall we?" Ranma said.

Just then Ranma frowned and tapped into his ear, where a tiny communication device was planted. "Ranma-sama, what is it?" Kodachi asked. Ranma merely put his finger to his lips as he continued to listen intensely.

"Squad Four, send half your members to Vice Captain Ardias' location. The rest of you and Squad Five, remain at your posts. I will make my way towards there now. Be vigilant. This could be a ruse to sneak past our surveillance. Watch our backs for now."

Akane and Kasumi immediately became concerned as they were aware that Vice-Captain Ardias was supposed to be Nabiki's bodyguard.

"Who is this Ardias, a new contender for Akane's affections," Kuno suddenly asked.

This time, Ranma lightly punched Kuno's face. "Would you please expand your imagination a little and stop thinking that everyone with a dick is out to get Akane? She's not that hot you know….." Kasumi's warning bells and Akane's temper suddenly flared…

"…… as far as I know, I'm the only one who thinks she is the most beautiful person in the entire galaxy and creation," Ranma finished, promptly defusing Akane's bomb and Kasumi's doomsday premonition in one stroke.

"You know Ranma, if I didn't know better, I would say that you're using my training as an excuse so that you no longer have to watch your mouth when you are around me," Akane said while glaring at Ranma.

"Anou-san, just so you know, I meant every word I say. And besides, today is supposed to be your vacation, no training today. Unfortunately, it appears that Nabiki decided to practise some of her training today and she's about to bite more than she can chew," Ranma said.

"Oh God, is Nabiki in danger?" Kasumi noted that Ranma did not seem particularly worried but she wondered why Ranma wanted to send more Jedi Guard to Ardias' position.

Ranma shook his head. "Actually no. Ardias is strong enough to challenge Happosai even without his power armour. Problem is his powers draw too much attention and the reason I sent some Jedi over there is to help clean up his mess, like the whole _**men in black **_cover up thingie,"

"Hello I'm still here. What is the matter with the Ice-Queen? She hasn't been answering my calls and e-mails for three days. I've even set aside some payments that will probably be payable once she gets back to me for whatever reason that is causing her to be late."

"Wait a minute, what payments are you talking about? I thought she stopped selling pictures of me and Akane to you a long time ago," Ranma said in surprise.

"Not your pictures Ranma, but your story so far. You see after your visit to us, we were still curious as to what made you this way. So we employed Nabiki for a hefty sum for information of your time as a Jedi Guard. Unfortunately, the information fee was higher than the amount of cash we have in the house so we're got sot some payable amounts remaining," Kuno said.

Shock ran through Ranma's heart. "So basically, everything Nabiki knows about me, you know as well?"

"Yes."

"Now tell me Kuno, have you told anyone else what Nabiki has revealed to you about me and the Jedi?"

"No, all our conversations took place in the house," Kuno said.

Ranma looked at the house and noted some surveillance cameras.

"Is your home by any chance, bugged or has surveillance?"

"Of course. We're scions of a wealthy family, so we have a private security firm overlooking most of the house. Sasuke is the only real guard whose actually here though, most of the time the security firm monitors from their office."

Akane asked, "Ranma, what is wrong?"

"Thanks to Nabiki, Happosai may very have a good idea of who we are now. Kuno, answer me this, how did Nabiki convey our story to you? E-mail or conversation?"

"Both. I couldn't understand the e-mail so I summoned her personally to clear my queries. This took place a day before the attacks happened."

"And do you think this conversation was recorded?" Ranma dreaded the answer to this question.

"Yes, my father does this to make sure all of his weird meetings with the minister of education representatives are set in stone. All of the recordings are given to Sasuke every two days who will then store it in our house archives."

"Wait a minute, how exactly did Sasuke loose his eye? Was it during the attacks?" Kasumi suddenly piped in.

"No, it happened just yesterday as he reached the house with the security recordings. Some fiend brutally attacked our servant but fortunately we heard the scuffle outside our house and came to his rescue. Perhaps its time to get an additional ninja from Sasuke's clan to protect our home," Kodachi said.

"It won't be necessary my lady," Sasuke suddenly appeared right in front of them. The ninja was indeed missing his left eye which he had covered using a pirate's eye patch but otherwise bore no sign of an attack. "This servant is still fit and able. The only reason I lost my eye was my own carelessness in not looking out for them as I carried the recordings home."

"Oh my, Sasuke is your eye alright?" Kasumi said as she put her hand on Sasuke's shoulder. The ninja blushed and said, "Its no big deal lady Kasumi. I just wished I had been able to protect the security recordings from those thieves. But most of them were stolen."

"Holy shit!" Ranma cursed. "Sasuke, the recording of Nabiki's conversation with Kuno about me. Is it still there?"

A look of realisation came over Kasumi and Sasuke as they thought about Ranma's line of questioning. Guiltily, Sasuke shook his head.

"Ranma, the information was stolen yesterday. We have to assume Happosai knows our identities and even a little of your capabilities. I'm worried Ranma, at how this information could be used against us," Kasumi said.

"I think we better check up on Nabiki. Whatever just happened, I take it that Nabiki and Ardias managed to draw attention to themselves. If Happosai responds before we do…."

"Everyone, we're going to rendezvous with Ardias. Kuno, Kodachi, I need your help. We need transportation now," Ranma turned to the two siblings. His sense of urgency penetrated their skulls and Kodachi immediately asked Sasuke to call for a limousine.

Both sisters prayed for Nabiki's safety as the limousine pulled up to the house and everyone went inside.

To be continued………..


	29. Chapter 24: Ice Queen's revenge

To everyone who posted their ideas and reviews, thank you so much for your encouragement and support. So without further ado:

**Chapter 24: Ice-Queen's Revenge**

Tokyo Trains were notoriously crowded during the early morning rush hour at 7am. People were jam packed like sardines in trains and there was little room for anyone to move to the next station. For some people, these provided a golden opportunity for crime, pick pocketing at best, groping at worst.

One such pervert's back was currently pressed against another girl's back. He had caught a glimpse of her front and couldn't believe his luck as the rush of people pushed him right against her. The middle aged man did not waste this opportunity to grope for the girl's buttocks. Unfortunately, so engrossed was he in getting his free pass, he failed to notice that at the girl's side was a 2 meter tall giant.

He suddenly felt sharp and excruciating pain as something heavy dropped on his feet. He could feel his feet bones cracking and opened his mouth to scream but an enormous hand covered and smothered his screams. His eyes followed the gigantic arm and beheld the battle scarred face of Vice-Captain Ardias. Ardias' face was emotionless but his eyes spoke volumes.

_Try again, and you will die._

Fortunately for the pervert, Ardias did not completely cripple the man's foot when he stepped on it, only enough to make him feel plenty of pain. The man nodded painfully and Ardias released the pressure on his foot. The man started crying but did not dare to voice out in front of Ardias. Other passengers looked at him and sneered, wondering why a full grown man was crying in the middle of the train.

Nabiki looked nonchalantly over her shoulder. "Problem Ardias?"

"The ways of your countrymen are despicable. A simple journey to earn one's bread is used instead to satisfy ones desires. Even worse, most of these souls do not know what they want and simply drift through life working for the sake of work."

"Hey, you're the one whose upbringing was assured the moment you became a Space Marine. You didn't have to worry about food or even your weapons production, which was handled by someone else. All you had to do was kill the enemies of your Emperor and worry about nothing else," Nabiki said.

"It isn't as simple as you think. I worry for you Nabiki, you push yourself too hard in your training that your studies have suffered. You seem to be wrongly analysing many aspects of our history, both of the Fallen and the Jedi Guard. When we go back to _Destiny's Forge, _we shall go through your analysis again and I will tell you exactly what's wrong with your interpretations. It is easy to analyse a battle from a textbook but you have to put yourself into the situation where there is normally not much time to think."

The ice-queen of Nerima coldly said. "Even within your context all your regard about honour has resulted you in living a damned life with redemption being a very small possibility. And frankly, Ranma has nearly gotten himself killed numerous times due to his stupid honour and sense of misguided moral values."

Ardias sighed. In this matter Nabiki won a point. He himself had betrayed his Emperor and Primarch despite being bound by oath and duty when he became a Space Marine. A lifetime of duty forever stained by lies and deceit sown by the great knight, Luther the sworn brother of the Lion El Johnson. Until the arrival of Andy Wong and Cypher which caused the former Fallen Angel to be reborn into the Chaplain of the Fallen Angels, the first Chaplain not anointed by his Chapter master and moreover, trained in the arts of war by an alien, being Andy Wong.

"Take my word in this case Nabiki. Giving in to revenge is the first path to damnation. You can even ask Captain Saotome regarding this matter."

The train then started slowing down and eventually came to a stop. Nabiki and Ardias quickly disembarked. Only then did the pervert finally howl in pain, resulting in many looks of contempt from the passengers as the train left. Nabiki smirked and asked Ardias, "Don't seek revenge huh? So what was that?"

"One word Nabiki, justice. For the Jedi, there can be no vengeance, only justice," Ardias answered.

The two exited the station and immediately Nabiki hailed a bus to stop. They boarded the bus and rode the bus all the way to what looked like a university campus. It was a Wednesday and countless students were walking here and there, studying, eating breakfast, walking, even dating early in the morning. Nabiki took in her surroundings and started walking through the campus, her ice-queen face back in her face. Most of the students who looked at her quickly moved away. Ardias would have thought it was because of his presence but now, back home and in her element, Nabiki was in control of the environment. Here, on campus albeit a different one where she usually went, Nabiki was the Ice-Queen once more.

Eventually they came to what was more or less the centre of the campus, where a large library was situated next to a cafeteria. The Tendo sister immediately spotted a group of girls giggling and laughing while surrounding a single guy. He was smartly dressed in a business suit and wore shades that made him look wealthy and influential judging by the crowd of girls surrounding him.

"Hey Ardias, time to make yourself scarce. Don't suppose you know how to watch from a distance without your target knowing you are there?" Nabiki asked.

"Very well, but keep your communicator on at all times Tendo Nabiki. We are privy to all your dealings now and I will not tolerate any dishonourable behaviour," Ardias said sternly.

Nabiki mentally frowned. She nearly threw a tantrum on _**Destiny's Forge**_ knowing that she would have no privacy except for her thoughts now that she was a Jedi padawan but knew it would do her no good. She had to do what she did best: work within the rules.

"Fine Ardias, just remember what you told me earlier," Nabiki coolly replied. Ardias' eyes narrowed. If she was about to do what he thought she was about to do…. Ardias saw Nabiki move off and inconspicuously put some distance between himself and Nabiki while still having her within sight.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"…….. and that stupid senpai actually believed me and ran into the women's side of the hot spring thinking his girlfriend is in trouble! Too bad he walked into the wrong side and into a congregation of Japan's Dominatrix Club!" the man said prompting another collective sounds of giggles and disgusts as the girls imagined a half naked guy running into a crowd of sadistic women.

"Oh gross, so what happened them Aoshima-san?" more than one of them prompted. The man was about to continue his story when suddenly, he noticed a short haired girl standing right in his path. His jovial mood toned down a great deal and he seemingly forgot about his story as he leered at the girl in front of him.

"Still wasting your days around with the skanks are you, Toshiyuki?" Nabiki responded to the man's leer with a sneer of her own. All the other girls were glaring daggers at her but even they felt uncomfortable at the exchange between their idol and what seemed to be a strange freshman.

"Well, well, if it isn't the Tendo Nabiki from Nerima. I must admit that this is a pleasant surprise. Could it be you have need of my services again? I hope the help I provided the last time was, well, helpful."

Her eyes narrowed. "Oh they were helpful, more than helpful. Today is more than business though. May I propose somewhere a little more private to discuss it?"

"Certainly. Do you prefer somewhere noisy or somewhere quiet, away from the crowd so to speak? I can arrange for a place with plenty of witnesses if you do not trust me," Aoshima Toshiyuki said

Nabiki then flashed a wide grin, a grin that somewhat unnerved the campus playboy. "Somewhere private, away from prying eyes. As always, have your wallet ready. We're going to have a long talk."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ardias tried to blend in with the crowd, an effort that he was failing miserably as there was no one else as big as him. Fortunately, the Space Marine was not entirely untrained in the art of espionage. The fact that he stood out couldn't be helped, all he could do was make sure that all attention was directed at him, and not Nabiki. He kept a careful distance from Nabiki and eventually saw her enter a chemical engineering building. Once he entered, Nabiki was no where to be seen but Ardias had planted a tracking device in Nabiki's handbag inside her mobile phone. His bionic eye which was now the same colour as his other black eye registered Nabiki's presence in on of the chemistry laboratories. He decided to stop at the café inside the building and have a cup of coffee as well as read a book on Japanese culture. But his right eye never left the tracking device and many viewed Ardias as an odd combination of being scary and funny as one eye was staring at the book while the other was trained towards the labs.

He became concerned when the two entered a room where his eye could not penetrate. Instead of following her, he instead stretched his mind through the Force, and amid the throng of minds that assaulted his now open conciousness, he focused on Nabiki's unique life force, which all living beings had, akin to a soul's DNA. Noticing her calmness and practically emotionless state, he waited.

Meanwhile down in the basements, Nabiki and Aoshima were inside a blast room, where experiments of explosive nature were performed behind reinforced steel walls. One wall had a reinforced glass display where there was a small lecture room. The room was also soundproof.

"So what is it…." he began before something hard knocked into the back of his head, making him see stars and at the same time, stumbling forward to the ground. He reacted quickly and scrambled to a wall to face his attacker. He was shocked to see Nabiki with her fist outstretched where his head had been.

"What, how…" he began before Nabiki began the process of beating the shit out of him. The petite girl seemed to have gained the strength of a full grown man, and Aoshima prided himself for his physical prowess and stamina, which was essential in his wooing of women and subsequent seduction. First she kicked him in the solar plexus. As he double over gasping for breath, her knee met his face and he fell backwards on to a table. Immediately, she jumped onto the table then his upper torso down by straddling him at his chest. Then she proceeded to punch his face. He tried to throw her of with his hands but she kept deflecting them away with a martial arts technique that was unknown to him.

"Do you have any idea what your _**henchmen**_ did to me?" she said softly amid her punches. This contrasted with her furious barrage which represented her inner rage.

The campus playboy then used his right leg to kick Nabiki's back. The girl flinched as the kick connected but steeled herself to stand the pain. The girl cracked a smile which chilled Aoshima's soul. "You know, I thought I would let you pay your debt with a beating, but it appears that your debt to me now has compound interest."

To his surprise and horror, Nabiki reached her left hand back then unzipped his pants. She promptly gripped his balls and with her middle finger, stabbed her long finger nail in between them. He howled with pain and in desperation, swung a vicious left hook at Nabiki. She used her left hand to catch the incoming punch and promptly twisted his wrist.

"Ah ah ah," she chided him as though he was a child and promptly dug her nail further until Aoshima was mortally afraid she would literally pierce his manhood.

"Whh……whhhhh…. Why? what… what what do you want" he gasped as he tried to resist the urge of moving in spite of the numerous injuries he now sported. Nabiki smiled. Now she understood the meaning of controlling someone by his balls.

"This is just a taste of what your henchmen put me through," satisfied with Aoshima's continued confusion, she elaborated "They practically set me up to be a fuck toy to me enemies. And since they are within your payroll, whether or not you meant it or not, you are responsible for my torture." She continued to talk calmly as though she was explaining about the weather even as her grip at his balls tightened. He gasped, "I …. don't... understand …….I ……. didn't know!!!"

"It doesn't matter. I needed someone to test my training. And it appears it paid off more than I expected." She smiled almost seductively as she lay beside him on the table, careful to pin his left functional arm beneath her. But she did not release her right hand grip. She then dipped her hand in his jacket and promptly fished out his cheque book and placed in it his still functioning right hand.

"OK, if anything else, I've also been taught the concept of mercy and kindness so I may as well be kind enough to enlighten you about what I went through. I'm sure you've seen the hentai _**Bondage Mansion**_ don't you? Well, boys made me go through it after they guaranteed my protection. Apparently, the 100,000 yen I paid them wasn't enough. They even signed a contract with me and after drinking sake to close the deal, promptly proceeded to do everything the contract said NOT to do with me. And not just me, my sister has also suffered. Since she refuses to collect payment from you, I'm doing it on her behalf," she said.

She was surprised when Aoshima chuckled. "What do you expect from those lowlifes? They would break your word over anyone giving them a bigger payoff. Actually, we all do, not just the young punks in our organisation, its just a matter of being ahead of your enemies to make sure your payoff is always bigger then theirs. Face it Nabiki, if anybody is at fault, its because you refused my suggestion to pay more for my connections."

Aoshima had decided that if he could beat her physically, he would defeat her psychologically. But Nabiki's expression never changed.

"So there are no set rules huh? Even in business? That anything goes in this world?"

"That's right," he said.

"Then you certainly can't blame for doing this," and with that, she reached into her handbag and promptly extracted her pepper spray which she then sprayed into his eyes. His howl was audible and when he tried to punch her with his remaining right hand, she merely deflected it but did not break it. "Sadly, I need your right hand to write your cheque. About 10 million yen for starters."

"ARE YOU INSANE! YOU BITCH, WHEN I GET OUT…. YEOWWWW!"

Nabiki shook her head. "Careful Aoshima, as much as I hate to admit it, you have a fine piece of tool down there, and it would be a shame to permanently damage it. By the time you're in any condition to take revenge, I'll be long gone and your cheque will be cleared into my secret bank account. Now be a gentleman and agree to sign the cheque will you?"

He was mortally afraid but despite his humiliation, burned with a desire to strike back. He realised that now he was completely powerless, Nabiki was not only as strong as him but far more skilful in the way she had attacked him. He nodded his head and Nabiki promptly slid off him to stand on the floor but maintained her grip. She placed the cheque book and a pen on his left side and allowed him to slowly raise himself to a sitting position. Seeing that she never stopped looking at him, he sighed, bent over to his left and used his right hand to write the cheque of 10 million yen. After looking at the cheque intently for any trickery, she smiled with satisfaction and placed it into her hand bag.

"Now that wasn't so hard wasn't it? Now be a dear and stay out cold until I leave campus," she said as she released her right hand from his balls and promptly released a right hook into Aoshima's face, knocking him off the table unto the floor. He lay face down on the floor unmoving. Satisfied she left the blast room.

On the floor, Aoshima moved and struggled to move his right hand into his pocket. He pulled out his handphone and pressed a speed dial button. At the answering voice, he whispered, "kill Tendo Nabiki NOW!!!"

To be continued…..


	30. Chapter 25: Clash of the gods

Hi everyone sorry for the long wait. Once again I thank you all for your support for my fiction.

This should probably be a side story as it has another crossover element that I don't mean to integrate into the main storyline but it does affect Nabiki's personal development so I'll put it as a main chapter. Sorry guys, but I've been dying to put this into writing for sometime but constrained myself because I didn't want to annoy you guys with another crossover, especially a non-integral one. Besides, through this story, you'll finally be able to picture what Ardias actually looks like behind his Death Mask.

Whether you enjoy it or not, please review or flame. The worst thing is not knowing what is wrong with your story or for that matter, what's right.

**Chapter 25: Clash of the gods.**

If Space Marines had a weakness, it was in their tunnel vision mentality when it came to doing their job. They had a tendency to ignore everything around them and focus only on the mission objective regardless of the situation. This applied to the Fallen as well although their time with the Jedi enabled them to become leaders of more than just genetically superior super soldiers. They were taught to be heroes, not just the armoured fist of their Emperor. It did mean that in whatever they did, they performed it better than others but otherwise, it meant that they could be surprised in more ways than one.

All of Ardias attention had been unconsciously focused on Nabiki. Using the force to touch another's mind was no small feat, especially for someone who was not inherently gifted. Like many others in the Jedi Guard including Ranma, Ardias force sensitivity was cultivated through intense training rather than it being born from birth, as was the case of Jaina. He also made the mistake of only sensing Nabiki instead of Aoshima, and as Nabiki was completely calm and composed during her time with Aoshima, Ardias had nothing to indicate a battle had taken place.

His eyes managed to lock on to Nabiki's DNA again so instead of focusing his Force senses at Nabiki, he expanded his awareness to her surroundings instead. He then noted with alarm that all over the building, intentions of murder were mushrooming and all were focused on one individual. He was about to stand and head for Nabiki when all of a sudden, he found his head in a iron grip.

"MORISATO! HOW DARE YOU LEAVE THE MOTOR CLUB IN OUR TIME OF NEED! HOW CAN YOU RELAX AND DRINK COFFEE WHEN AOSHIMA THREATENS OUR CLUB!

"TRAITOR! YOU'VE BETRAYED THE TRUST OF…. ARRRGHHHH!"

Ardias reached over his shoulders with both hands and grabbed the necks of the two people attacking his person. He lifted them up over his shoulder and slammed them unto the small table in front of him, breaking it in the process. He then took a good look at the upside down faces of the two figures.

They were huge for Japanese, nearly the height of a Space Marine and nearly half the bulk as well. One had short black hair and wore a rather dirty singlet with rough jeans. The other was a long haired blonde with small sun glasses and dressed like a leather clad biker. Both were shocked out of their lives at the display of strength that Ardias displayed. But what concerned Ardias was the name one of the two called him.

"What did you call me?" he said quietly. He could sense no ill-will in the two, merely a sense of playfulness and downright eccentricity. In fact, the long haired one almost displayed an aura of gentleness which contrasted greatly with his gangster like demeanor.

"Oh my God Morisato, when did you take bodybuilding? Belldandy must be mighty pleased with your …. size now. Oh how you've grown," the black haired man actually started crying tears of joy.

"Den-chan, our little bird has become a soaring eagle," similar tears filled the other man's eyes and both started crying with happiness.

_By the Emperor, what sort of twisted world does Captain Saotome come from anyway? They're as lunatic as chaos heretics!_

His blood ran cold as he heard Nabiki's battle cries and the sound of a fight from inside the building. He released the two crying men and went into the building. His bionic eye detected the Ice-Queen fighting some assailants in a lecture hall and he immediately went to it and burst through the doors.

A crowd of students rushed out and nearly swamped him aside, but he stood his ground and made his way into the hall. Inside, he saw Nabiki fighting off two men at once on the lecture hall stage while another six looked on. The two appeared to be taking her quite seriously and Nabiki was about to be backed to a wall. In spite of that, her demeanor was cool and for good reason: she was toying with them.

Unfortunately, Nabiki's training did not include dodging firearms yet. And that was what one of the other punks who were refraining from assaulting her pulled out of his knapsack. A pistol with a silencer attached.

Ardias leaped into the air towards the six men and shouted "REPENT, FOR TOMORROW YOU DIE!" His cry filled the entire hall and rattled the room's walls and by the time shooter noticed him, Ardias' giant fist met his face.

The other five were shocked at his appearance and tried to draw their fire arms but Ardias began throwing all of them throughout the lecture hall. The other two attacking Nabiki stopped their attacks to look in horror at their comrades being tossed like potatoes. This gave Nabiki the opportunity to kick knee one between his legs and then throwing a karate chop at the other man's throat. Both man went down wheezing in pain and Nabiki dealt another blow at their heads to knock them out.

She surveyed her handiwork before facing the towering figure of Ardias. For the first time, that morning, she felt a tinge of fear as this was the first time she saw Ardias enraged _**without **_his death mask. And this time, there was no Jedi Captain to restrain him.

"YOU STUPID PATHETIC EXCUSE FOR A WOMAN! YOUR POWERS WERE GIVEN TO YOU FOR YOUR PROTECTION, NOT FOR YOUR VENGEANCE! NOW LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE! THIS IS THE IMAGE OF THE JEDI THAT YOU'VE GIVEN TO THE PUBLIC! THE JEDI LORD WAS IN THE PROCESS OF REVEALING THE JEDI TO THE WORLD BUT NOW YOU'VE INSTIGATED AN ATTACK WITHOUT PROVOCATION!" the Space Marine could barely keep his wrath in check. Not for the first time, he was glad that Nabiki hadn't been taught lethal techniques yet.

"Provocation? That man was the one who set me up. You said so yourself, for a Jedi, there can be no vengeance, only justice.

"DO YOU TRULY THINK I CAN BELIEVE THATYOU HAVE NO ANGER IN YOUR HEART? THAT YOU ONLY WISH FOR JUSTICE! LORD WONG WOULD HAVE YOUR HEAD IF YOU HAD KILLED ANY OF THESE MEN! THIS IS NOT A CODE WE INVOKE LIGHTLY! IF THERE'S ONE THING THE LORD HAS IMPRESSED IN THE JEDI GUARD, _**AN EYE FOR AN EYE AND THE ENTIRE WORLD GOES BLIND!"**_

"Well I haven't killed anyone. I've just managed to re-establish my reputation and now people will think twice about attacking my family. And if they do, Kasumi and Akane would thrash them and that would make sure the local elements stay away from my family. That'll make the Yakuza think twice about allying with Happosai, if they haven't already, given that six Jedi Captains have already made short work of a hundred of their underlings. I'm just doing my own small part in making your job easier."

Ardias fumed, as much as he hated to admit it, Nabiki had a point. _**Assuming **_the Yakuza were not corrupted by chaos yet. "If you continue down this path…"

Nabiki rolled her eyes and said, "I'll be on the path of damnation yadi yadi yada. Assuming there is a heaven in the first place."

That broke the back of Ardias patience. He drew his hand back to give Nabiki a slap….

….. only to be thrown sideways as a bolt of lightning appeared out of nowhere and struck the Space Marine. The Space Marine screamed as thousands of voltage coursed through his body. Fortunately, the genetic modifications proved their worth again as it only left him slightly burnt instead of thoroughly charring him. Nearly all his bionic circuitry was short circuited, including his bionic eye. He fell on all fours, trying to contain the pain and focus on the self-healing Jedi techniques to recuperate as fast as possible.

"Dear me, don't you know it's bad to hit a woman?" a sultry voice said.

Nabiki looked at her saviour and saw an extremely beautiful and voluptuous woman standing at the lecture hall entrance with her finger pointed at Ardias. She looked like a taller version of Yoruichi, though not as tanned but was even more well endowned than Ranma's vice-captain. But what stood out was her long lustrous white hair, which was loose and as long as her waist. She was so beautiful, she seemed to be a goddess to Nabiki.

Unfortunately, that was not how Ardias saw her. He took one look at her, and a fury the likes Nabiki had never known exploded from him.

"DEMON! FOUL WITCH OF CHAOS! REPENT FOR TOMORROW YOU DIE!" Ardias screamed as he lunged for the woman. The woman looked at Ardias and her jaw promptly dropped.

"Keichi?" she mouthed.

Energy crackled at his hand and then, his ancient weapon, the Crozius Arcanum, materialized in his hand. The power mace crackled with anti-matter disrupting energy and the woman's astonishment was replaced by fear when a second lightning blast from her fingers was absorbed by the mace. Like a raging rhinoceros, Ardias slammed into the woman and both went right through the lecture hall. Nabiki could only blink when she looked into the wall and saw at least another three holes where Ardias had crashed through three walls. Chaos started to reign as the students took a moment to realize that their campus had become a battlefield between two superhumans and promptly became a screaming and fleeing crowd.

Outside, the woman had managed to get out of Ardias grip and was now flying around, trying to avoid the Space Marine's mace. "OOI, WHO IN THE WORLD ARE YOU? WHAT HAVE I DONE TO YOU?!" she shouted.

"No, your outside shell will not deceive me. Your demon blood screams to all who would hear."

The woman's eye's narrowed and she then started throwing balls of fire at Ardias. "No one can judge my heritage, least of all an insignificant excuse of a witch hunter like you!"

The fire balls dissipated the moment it came into contact with the Crozius and Ardias continued his advance at the woman who seemed to be a sorceress. She took to the air for higher ground but Ardias leaped high into the air and managed to grab on to front of her blouse and held on to her in midair.

"Great, first you're a witch hunter and now you are a hentai," she panted due to the strain of bearing the weight of the Space Marine. "Well no free passes at me!"

She put her hands Ardias' left hand which gripped her and even more electricity shot out of her hands and coursed through Ardias' body. He screamed in pain but managed to get a swing at her. The mace connected with her head, at last knocking her unconscious. Unfortunately, both of them were at least thirty feet in the air and dropped down with a huge crash in the middle of the campus. Both lay quite still for awhile.

Nabiki hesitantly approached the two, not quite sure what happened. Actually, she knew exactly what happened, she just wondered what set off Ardias to go into killing mode so suddenly. As she was about to touch Ardias' shoulder, Ardias huge hand swiped her hand painfully. He slowly got up from the wreckage and looked with cold fury at Nabiki.

"This is the fate of traitors and heretics who harness the blasphemous powers of chaos," he said as his mace crackled to life. He lifted the mace and turned around to smite the woman.

"NOOOOOOOO!" he heard a scream and the moment he turned, he found himself staring at himself. His stopped his mace mid air, only moments away from the person's face.

At first glance, he thought he was looking at his clone. The man's face bore the exact same features as his own. But the man, no, a runt of a man, was considerably smaller, only five and a half feet tall, skinny with no sign of muscles, and dressed like an ordinary student. His hands were held out wide, as though to block the massive Space Marine from hurting the downed woman. What astonished Ardias even more, was the total lack of fear as he looked past the mace and straight into Ardias' eyes. There was steel in those eyes that somehow made Ardias feel ashamed of his actions. He knew in the bottom of his heart that the woman was a demon yet here was a mortal with no powers whatsoever, defending her with nothing but the conviction of being right.

If the other man was surprised at seeing a bigger clone of himself, he did not show it. "Get out of my sight civilian, you have no business here," Ardias growled.

"She is the sister of the woman I love, so I say its my business if you want to kill her," the man shouted back. His voice thankfully did not match Ardias' deep baritone at all.

Ardias for the first time in a long time became confused. He used the Force to sense the man's aura and found it pure and uncorrupted. Yet when he tried to probe into his mind, he instantly hit an iron wall that was not made up of years of training but seemed natural and instantaneous. Few among the Jedi could claim to have such a pure aura, not even the Jedi Captains. As a matter of fact, his aura was as pure as Kasumi's.

"Please sir, could you calm down and listen to our story?" a soft female voice that sounded like Kasumi said. Ardias turned his head and to his shock, he saw the Jedi Lord Andy Wong walking towards him. Next to him, was yet another woman with goddess like beauty that surpassed even the woman he had just battled. Her pale skin was flawless and her eyes were the deepest sapphire. Golden hair tied up in a long ponytail cascaded down the back of her blue dress and was as long as her waist.

She was for all intent and purpose, a goddess like version of Kasumi.

"Vice-Captain Ardias, stand down. These sentient beings are not our enemies. Your intuition was wrong. You should not have attacked."

"But my Lord, sense for yourself, that witch reeks of chaos magic," Ardias protested.

"A circumstance of birth, not years of training in witchcraft Ardias. These women are not human, I'll grant you that, but they are not demons either. Nor goddesses," the Jedi Lord quietly said.

"Then what are they my Lord? And moreover, how is it that this man here resembles me so closely in face?" he said pointing at his smaller look-alike.

"Hello, I have a name you know," the other finally spoke up, clearly annoyed. "Belldandy what's going on here?"

"I'm sorry Keichi, but I'll tell you later. Could you help get Urd home first?" the other woman said.

Keichi sighed and proceeded to try lift Urd up bridal style but found he could not. Andy Wong then walked over to Keichi and picked up Urd for him. He instructed Keichi to bend down in a position to piggy back Urd. Once Keichi had Urd on his back, he looked at Belldandy who smiled at him then walked as far as he could from Ardias and Andy.

"Well, so much for thinking before acting. And to think that this loose cannon is the once who is judging my psychological condition to become a Jedi," Nabiki said with her arms crossed.

Andy Wong glared at Nabiki then directed Ardias to Belldandy. The three started conferring together but when Nabiki approached them to listen to their conversation, she found that despite being next to them, she couldn't hear any sound coming out of their mouths although their lips were moving. Ardias wa$s talking quite animatedly whereas the woman called Belldandy and Andy Wong were much more calm then the Space Marine. All three pointedly ignored Nabiki, who in the end, crossed her arms and fumed to the empty café of the wrecked engineering building.

After talking awhile, she saw Ardias bow to one knee to Belldandy in the same fashion as the Space Marines did when they were greeted by the Jedi Lord. The beautiful girl smiled and raised Ardias to his knees and also bowed to him. She then gave a wave of her hand and said to Nabiki, "Excuse me Tendo Nabiki, could you come here please."

The Ice-Queen walked over to the trio. "Do I get to know what the hell is going on here?"

"Actually no. What happened to Ardias is irrelevant to your training. However you have a lot to explain by the end of the day. Its still the afternoon, and you have until midnight before all of you return to _**Destiny's Forge**_. Captain Ranma and the others are on the way to clean up your mess. Ardias and I will go back now, and Belldandy has agreed to escort you until they arrive," Andy Wong said.

To her surpise, Andy Wong then knelt to one knee so that he could be eye level with Nabiki. "Nabiki, I'll say this once again and I pray that you will heed the voice of thirty five thousand years of experience. Let go of your anger and desire for vengeance. I cannot say I understand your pain, for I am not a woman. I can only speak for the women in my life who have traveled down the dark path of vengeance. It will only bring you more suffering. I beg of you, please focus on loving your sisters instead of searching for revenge, because in the end, it will be love that will conquer your fear."

His voice hardened, "The choice will have to be made soon Nabiki. Your sisters already decided the moment they stepped foot on _**Destiny's Forge**_. You have yet to do so. I will give you one more chance to pass Ardias' Interrogation. If you don't, you will live in the shadow of your sisters' protection. You will not participate in any way to the defense of your family and world with the Jedi. From that point onwards you are on your own. The choice is yours Nabiki, we won't force you to do anything. We may all be part of God's plans but he still gave us free will to make that plan work. Do what you will. It's up to you."

With that, Ardias and Andy Wong walked away.

Once again, Nabiki found her mind in turmoil, and she hated herself for being confused. Her intelligence and heart still cried out for blood yet she feared the consequences that Andy Wong frequently warned about that path. Was there any way to balance that path?

Belldandy looked at Nabiki and as though answering her thought, she shook her head.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

At a secluded spot behind some shophouses, Ardias and Andy prepared themselves for teleportation. Ardias was truly downcast. "My Lord…" he began.

The Jedi Lord put his hand on the other man's shoulder. "Enough Ardias. You made a mistake and you can learn from this. Now be silent for awhile," Andy Wong said. He then stood a little further away from Ardias.

"He really is a nice man but bears such a terrible burden in his heart. I hope you won't punish him too severely," a little voice said at his right shoulder. He looked at it and saw a miniature 6 inch version of Belldandy perched on his shoulder. He smiled.

"You really are so much like her, Belldandy. I wish you could meet her one day," he said.

"The day will come. We will survive the coming darkness," Bell said with optimism.

Andy sighed. "I can only pray Bell. The future is clouded and I cannot foretell anything. This is a turning point in my life too. I will pray for your race as well as Keichi Morisato. I never thought I would find a male of such inner strength. Now that is a love I would wager will last forever."

Belldandy blushed. "Thank you for your confidence in our love. I promise I'll communicate your message to my father and stepmother right after this. At the very least, this town of Nekomi will be a safe haven in times to come."

"Thank you Belldandy. Otherwise, I hope your race will stay out of this war. The fate of this world lies within its own human race, not the Jedi or your race of gods and demons. For good or ill I do not know but I say this, let the choice be theirs."

To be continued…...

**Author's note**

In line with my beliefs and imagination, I've ret-conned the Ah My Goddess universe slightly. Notice I try not to identify Bell as a goddess or her father as God. In this fiction, I've made them more of a powerful alien race that works behind the scenes of developing the human race as opposed to omnipotent gods. They always seem to be more like aliens to me the way they run the world's reality using a super computer in that anime. The main point I wrote this is so as to

Give Ardias a face. Long time ago I had the crazy idea of making a Space Marine version of the nerdy Keichi Morisato, that's why I keep implying on Ardias' asian features.

Give Nabiki a chance to do combat

Separate the demons of the Ah! My Goddess universe from the demons of Chaos in Warhammer. Essentially, the gods and demons are separate alien races.

Take care all and God bless you all.


	31. Chapter 26: Dark Pact

**Author's note**

Just a brief warning to all that the end of this story might be a little disturbing, and I pray for your forgiveness if you are disgusted by my perverted imagination, especially to the readers who are ladies.

**Chapter 26: Dark Pact**

As the limousine cruised along the highway on its way to Nekomi ward, Ranma listened intently into his ear-piece communication. He had been listening to the Jedi Lord's conversation with Ardias and their mysterious new ally. His heart was becoming increasingly jaded to Nabiki's attitude. If Nabiki wasn't Akane's sister, he would have advocated that her memory and knowledge of the Jedi and Ranma be completely wiped out, perhaps permanently altering her memory altogether. The earlier revelation of Nabiki leaking information on the Jedi Guard had already rattled Ranma's cage. This, along with the funeral had already made Ranma in a bad mood. There was also the matter of Happosai and Herb disappearing of the face of the Earth.

_**Two days earlier, War room, Destiny's Forge**_

_Ranma couldn't believe what he was hearing._

_"Nothing? You're saying that with all the technology we have, not to mention thousands of years of experience, we've been unable to track down Happosai or Herb?"_

_"Don't make me repeat myself. I would have thought we've progressed beyond this point. Yes Ranma, for all intents and purposes, we've lost track of their trail," Neji said._

_"But we're the Jedi Guard! Happosai may be smarter and intelligent than we expect but to evade not only Destiny's Forge sensors but your 2__nd__ Division scouts together? I mean, the Musk have a country for goodness sake! That should have already narrowed down your search for Herb and Happosai!" Ranma said._

_Neji didn't say anything but merely pointed at the holographic image that showed what was once a city in the jungle but it was completely deserted. The image zoomed out to the map of China, which had been coloured to show the various territories officially held by the People's Republic of China, that which was held by the Chinese Amazons, the Musk and even a tiny region marking the Phoenix Mountain, home of the Phoenix people. All of which had dots signifying significant populated places, military bases, outposts and even secret research facilities. Interestingly enough, at least one research factility was located in Amazon territory while the Musk had none._

_Ranma looked at the display curiously. "The Amazons have an Area 51 in their territory?"_

_The 2__nd__ Division Captain shrugged. "Cologne agreed to tell me where it is but as to what's there, my best guess is further research on harnessing the power of the Jusenkyo springs. In any case, as you can see for yourself, in the short time between Lord Wong's first encounter with the Bloodthirster of Khorne to my rescuing Nabiki from Herb, their entire evil coalition has effectively vanished off the face of Earth. Believe me, I've been there myself. Their entire cities and populations just packed their bags and disappeared."_

_"Populations and soldiers don't disappear Neji. What about teleportation?" Ranma asked._

_"Highly unlikely," Hitsugaya said from his chair, gently massaging his temples. Dark circles were starting to show around his green eyes, the 6__th__ Division Captain had not slept in two days. "Whether they use technology or magic to do so, we would have detected it instantly. Even with OUR capabilities, that sort of ability is too complex and requires a great deal of energy."_

_"This is getting unnerving," Jaina said. "Neji's intelligence have come up with empty, Hitsugaya's Force mages haven't detected any anomalies, and even my stealth variant A-Wings haven't picked up any disturbance from ANYWHERE on the globe. I mean, even if Happosai is laying quiet doesn't mean the rest of the world is. Perhaps its time to expand our search outside of Japan and China?"_

_"We're talking of only one hundred Jedi with espionage capabilities. Granted we're fully rested and ready to overextend ourselves. Problem is, this world isn't THAT primitive. 30 Jedi alone are still in the process of hacking into the world's government agencies while the rest are all in field missions in China and Japan. Some of the encryption used by the Japanese and American government is even up to OUR level of technology. My Lord, you were right, somewhere along the line, this world has been visited by extra galactic life forms, and advanced ones at that. Their influence is in the information network of this world, to say nothing of their technology," Neji said._

_Andy Wong gazed at each of the Captain's eyes. With the exception of Cypher, all were displaying a sense of frustration at the lack of the fruits of their investigation. He knew that they had deeply underestimated the world before them, thinking that Ranma's problems could be solved swiftly and easily. After all, the Jedi Guard was the most powerful military organization in their galaxy now, despite their small numbers._

_He looked at Cypher, who appeared to be quietly taking in the information without emotion._

_"Your thoughts, Cypher?" he asked._

_"Only what you've just been thinking my Lord. That we've all been arrogant and letting our pride cloud our judgement."_

_The other four captains looked at Cypher in surprise._

_"Consider this. How many of us has been defeated by Ranma? Physically at least?"_

_After awhile, everyone excluding Ranma lifted up their hands. _

_"Yes, all of us, even our Lord. Five years of Jedi training resulted in him being one of the most powerful fighters in the galaxy, to say nothing of his vaunted medical skills. If Ranma can become so, why not others from his very own home?"_

_"As much as I hate to admit it, Ranma is unique. Whatever he learns, he has always learnt it fast," Neji said, reliving his first defeat at Ranma's hand. Granted it cost Ranma dearly, but to think that the loudmouthed, aquatransexual had defeated the century old Sith Lord armed with a lightsaber, Sith AND Kagutsuchipowers with nothing but his bare hands and chi techniques was still a blow to Neji's pride._

_"He is," Cypher agreed_. _"But only in his heart and soul. His capabilities on the other hand, may be representing of the crème de la crème of this planet, and we know he isn't the only one. Happosai and Herb are the only once we know so far. We know nothing of the powers beyond Japan's and China's shores."_

_Cypher pressed a button on his chair and the holographic view of China and Japan promptly expanded to show the entire globe._

_"What I'm saying is that we have to treat Happosai and Herb as our equals. Along with whatever forces they will conjure up. Bear in mind, they've already fought us. They know part of what we can do and will prepare for upper estimates. We can't be lulled into a false sense of security. Not even here in our ship can we do so."_

_The other five captains absorbed this information silently. Hitsugaya was kicking himself for not thinking of this earlier. After all, he was supposed to be the best in military strategy and psychology._

_"Captains, Cypher has addressed a very important issue, one which we must take action immediately. We've all become arrogant the moment we reached Ranma's world and its time to shake ourselves. But first, I would like some progress reports on the Nerima wrecking crew's training. Ranma and Cypher, how goes Akane's and Kasumi's training?"_

_For the first time since the meeting started, Ranma's face lightened up. "Very well indeed my Lord. They've far surpassed our estimates and have completed the initiation training for martial arts. Two hours ago, both passed the Codex Interrogation and will be ready for the intermediate training as well as preliminary chi and Force development training. Akane's temper has improved a great deal and she's has shown promise in leadership development."_

_"Their firearms training leaves much to be desired but they've fallen within our expectations," Cypher interjected. "Kasumi in particular, displays reluctance in handling firearms, although she bears it with gritted teeth and determination to do what's necessary. She is a natural with the DL-44 blaster pistol though. (this caused Jaina to raise her eyebrows, as this was the favourite weapon of her father, Han Solo.) Akane seems to favour heavy weapons and had showed the most aptitude with the Space Marine Bolters."_

_"What about Nabiki?" Lord Wong asked._

_Neji and Jaina looked at each other and promptly pressed the bridge of their noses. "She's done marginally well in her martial arts training. At least not any punk with a gun or knife can threaten her again. But her psychological profile is still clouded with uncertainty and anger. Perhaps its better that we leave Nabiki out of the coming war. I don't even want to assess her Force potential, right now she's too volatile," Jaina said._

_"No, we should give her more time. It is unfair to judge her by the same standard as Kasumi and Akane. In any case, shelving her aside will only increase her resentment and bitterness, knowing she'll forever be at the protection of others. One way or another, we must develop her full potential, and pray that it is geared towards a good cause," the Jedi Lord said._

_"As you wish my Lord, but I'm telling you, that is one stubborn girl we're talking about with nearly no sense of humility."_

_Andy Wong nodded than stood up. "In light of their 3 months of training, perhaps its time we gave them a break. Hopefully meeting with her sisters will help steer Nabiki to the right path. Assemble the Jedi Guard for convocation, we will hold a prayer assembly at 0500 hours tomorrow to prepare the Jedi for the coming war and address our overconfidence. Until then, we must keep our vigilance and not lose hope. Happosai and Herb are out there somewhere, along with the other demented perverts. No way in hell am I going to allow an age of debauchery to fall on this world," Andy Wong said with gritted teeth at the last part._

_End flashback_

_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Hello, Earth to Ranma?" Ranma was shaken out of his musings by a waving hand in front of his face. "Spacing out Ranma? That's really not in your character?" Akane said.

Ranma shook his head. "There's a lot of things we didn't know about each other, me actually using my brain being one of them," he said sadly.

"Perhaps a drink will soften your worries Ranma-sama?" Kodachi who was seated opposite him in the limousine promptly extracted a can of beer from the tiny mini-bar and offered it to Ranma.

He shook his head. "Sorry Kodachi, but I don't drink. Thanks though."

"I wonder what business Nabiki has at Nekomi Institute of Technology? That place doesn't have any major business courses or anything relating to business studies," Kasumi wondered.

Akane frowned. "Didn't she have a friend over once? That pervert that tried to hit on you when you served him tea?"

"Aoshima Toshiuki? Oh my, I didn't know he was from Nekomi. A bit odd that he studies there though."

"Did you say Aoshima? That pathetic excuse of a noblemen!" Kuno exclaimed. "That fiend belongs to one of the most notorious business families in Japan!"

"And what are you, a poor and noble samurai?" Akane sneered.

Ranma held out his hands. "Enough, I have a fair amount of headaches that I can't do anything about now considering I promised to take you girls for a day off. Nabiki for good or ill just made all of our lives harder."

"Surely that money-grubbing woman couldn't cause too much trouble. She's not a martial artist for goodness sake!" Kuno said.

Ranma smiled. "Remind me to let you spar with her someday. I can assure you she will give you a few bruises to remember by."

Kuno promptly laugh, the image of frail looking Nabiki beating him up Akane style being too absurd for him to keep a straight face. Kodachi also giggled at the imagination. Their laughter tapered off as they noticed that Ranma was keeping a straight face.

"You're kidding right?" the siblings asked.

Ranma shrugged.

"Master, I believe we're being followed?" Sasuke said from the driver's seat. "Please look out the windows."

The passengers in the car looked out the side windows and the rear window. Surrounding their limousine were three motorcycles, each covering three sides of the car. Each motorcyclist were dressed in brown robes which flowed in the wind over their white tunics, pants and brown boots. They all wore black helmets.

"It's alright Sasuke, these are our escorts," Ranma said. One of the motorcyclists lifted her motorcycle visor and flashed her red glowing eyes at Ranma, who then gave a smile and saluted her.

"Be careful Yoruichi, we don't want you flashing your blue skin to this idiot. For all we know, it will turn him on too," Ranma spoke into his comm. device.

"Saotome Ranma, now you're making me mad, and this time itsyour fault!" Kuno fumed. "And what's this about blue skin?"

"Nevermind that, because we're here," Ranma said as the car slowed to a stop.

Judging by Ranma's expression earlier, the Tendo sisters were expecting police cars and ambulances to surround the place, not to mention panicking bystanders. Instead, they found most of the students strangely dazed, standing around campus listening to something. When Ranma opened the door, a beautiful song entered the car and all of them were momentarily mesmerised by the music. It was song of joy, healing and goodwill that washed away all of their fears and doubts. The Tendos and Kunos were practically frozen by it but Ranma continued to move out of the car and focused his attention on the music. He looked to his three guards and saw they were also affected by the music.

"My God, I have yet to hear anything so beautiful in my entire life," Yoruichi whispered as she lifted her helmet. She had just enough sense to turn on her illusion field to make her look like a dark skinned beauty. "It's not one of ours that for sure Captain. None of our Force mages has a Force signature so…… innocent."

"Lord Wong has made contact with one of the alien races that inhabits this world. According to what he has revealed to me, this race will stay out of the coming war and protect this ward. But I never would have imagined they would have this much power," Ranma said.

"Kasumi, Akane, Kuno, Kodachi, stay here. Jedi Drag, Jedi Galen, be on your guard and please make sure you're not seen. It won't do for anyone to see your real form now."

_**"Very well my Captain. May the Force be with you," **_one of the Jedi replied with a series of snarls and hisses.

The Jedi Captain took a deep breath and started running to the source of the song, ever weary of evil intentions. Despite the song's relaxing nature, Ranma kept his guard up. When he came to a building marked _Chemical Engineering_, he beheld the sight of a goddess like beauty singing in front of a large hole made in the building. As she sang, the walls inside seemed to mend itself, bricks, mortar and broken stones returning to the damage wall, restoring it as though no damage had been done in the first place. The students around them seemed oblivious to their eyes, all just focusing on the song which spoke of restoration and healing. Any worries Ranma had up to that point promptly vanished and it was all he could do to maintain his control over his will being overcome by the magic of that woman.

Only after the walls were fully mended did the girl stop and Ranma notice Nabiki sitting on a bench nearby. The girl wasn't mesmerised however and appeared to be not affected by the song at all. Ranma ignored Nabiki for now and walked to address the mysterious songstress.

"I'm sure my Lord Andy Wong has explained our identities. Nevertheless, I must apologise for the disturbance our student has caused. Rest assured she will be taught the errors of her ways," Ranma said with gritted teeth.

"It's alright, Captain Saotome. We all make mistakes and I'm sure she will learn her lesson. Please don't be too harsh on her Captain, this has been harder for her than others. Do not worry about the others who witnessed the little quarrel between my sister Urd and Vice Captain Ardias. The memory of everyone who witnessed it has been erased from their minds."

Ranma decided not to ask how Belldandy knew his name. "Lady Belldandy, you have no idea how compromised our security is now, as well as the safety of this world. I don't know what you are doing here but I suggest you and others of your race leave before everything comes apart," Ranma said.

She shook her head. "I'm sorry Captain, but as I told Lord Wong, I too have someone I want to protect here. And I'm willing to do anything to protect him, and no one will harm him while I'm still alive, even if the lord of skulls, Khorne appears himself."

Ranma decided not to query how deep her knowledge of chaos was. For a moment, she almost appeared scary with her resolve to protect whoever it was in this ward.

"As you wish my Lady. May the Force be with you," he said. Belldandy smiled and gave a little bow, which Ranma returned before Belldandy vanished. He then walked to Nabiki and sat next to her.

"Please, I've already been lectured by Lord Wong, I don't think you can add anything further to what he has said," Nabiki said.

Ranm sighed. "And I'm not going to, at least not until the end of the day. You were given leave to relax for a day and that's a promise your masters will keep. Seriously though, we wanted you girls to go to a spa, shopping or whatever it is you girls like to do, not beat up a bunch of punks."

"In case you haven't noticed, we haven't got any more money. Everything we cash and cash equivalent we had was given to Herb and Aoshima, the guy I just bashed up. So no, I don't think we can go shopping or joyriding. I never even wanted this day off," Nabiki replied.

"What you want and what you _need _are two totally different things. Look, the day is only half gone and I'm already sick and worried. The good news is that the Kunos are saner than usual and I was thinking just this once we can take advantage of their hospitality. But Nabiki, you're not to charge or cheat Kuno in anyway. From now on, everything they do for you and your sisters will be out of courtesy and friendship. They're outside now, in a limousine along with Akane and Kasumi," Ranma said.

"Yeah whatever, as long as we can get the day over with," Nabiki said and then started walking to the entrance. The pig tailed martial artists massaged his temple and followed her.

Xxxxxxxxxx

_**Location: Hangar bay, Destiny's Forge, 0000 hours, **_

Andy Wong put down his hydrospanner and inspected the energy canister which was like an ammunition clip for the blaster rifle used by his personal mobile suit, the Main Variable Fighter double zero nine Eagle Gundam. It wasn't an especially powerful mobile suit; in fact the Eagle Gundam was the mainstay of their mobile suit force. But Andy preferred flying in jet mode, which was the Eagle Gundam's specialty rather than fight in mobile suit form. Moreover, he took the responsibility of leading the regular Jedi into battle instead of their specialist captains leading their divisions. For the Jedi Guard pilots, they had the responsibility of maintaining their own fighter craft, and the Jedi Lord was no exception to the rule.

The hangar bay's doors opened and the transport came in bearing the Tendo sisters and Ranma. The four of them had spent the rest of the day in Tokyo, getting reacquainted with the Kunos. The Kunos had been eager to make up to Akane and Ranma for their disturbances in the past and promptly took them on a shopping spree. Later that night, they went to Tokyo Disneyland for dinner and to watch the fireworks display. Only after 11:30pm did they make their way back to the rendezvous point where a transport was waiting to take them back to Destiny's Forge.

The transport landed and a landing ramp below its belly opened up to disgorge its passengers. The three Tendo sisters, Ranma, Yoruichi and two other Jedi walked out of the ramp. Yoruichi and the other two Jedi immediately broke off from the group. Kasumi, Akane and Ranma promptly stood at military attention when they saw Andy looking at them. Nabiki followed suit only after Akane stomped at her right foot.

From 18 feet above the ground, the Jedi Lord leaped unto the ground in front of them. "At ease apprentices. Get a goodnight sleep, your training resumes in earnest in the morning. May the Lord grant you peaceful rest and sweet dreams."

The Tendos bowed and Kasumi said, "Thank you Lord for this wonderful day. You didn't have to do this just for us you know."

Andy waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. "Even during the height of the Yuuzhan Vong war, I've always made sure every soldier under my command, Jedi or not, gets a reprieve from the slaughter once in awhile. Now go. Captain Saotome, please stay. We must confer."

Ranma nodded and then did something that made all of the Jedi still working in the hangar bay go awwwwww…….. He actually took Akane in his arms and kissed her cheek. She blushed furiously and whispered, "Ranma, what are you doing? You're a Captain for goodness sake and everybody is looking."

"Bah, let them look. I didn't spend the last 15 years gaining their trust and respect for nothing. Besides, this is a small downpayment for the hell we're about to throw you into for the next few months," he said.

Akane smiled and continued to hold Ranma for a little while.

"Come sister, its time to get our rest," Kasumi said, although she hated to break the tender moment being shared by Ranma and Akane now. The two reluctantly parted and the Tendo sisters walked back to their quarters, Nabiki's merely had a bored look in her face.

The Jedi Lord motioned to Ranma to follow him. Instead of leading Ranma into the war room, Andy instead led Ranma to the armoury room. Ranma's eyes narrowed as he realised where his master was taking him. When they reached the armoury, he saw that two sets of equipment were waiting for them at the armoury dispensary.

"My Lord, was there a mission arranged today that I didn't know about?" Ranma asked.

Andy shook his head. "No. However I want you to follow me in infiltrating the Pentagon in America. You have not been on an infiltration mission for a long time now. It's time to get some practice. Our slicers have yet to penetrate the CIA databanks from the outside yet. As Captain Cypher has suggested, its time to expand our investigations. In particular, I want to know if the US Government keeps tabs on any potential humans with Force powers or otherwise superhuman abilities."

"Superhuman abilities? You mean like a Superman or something?" Ranma joked.

Andy Wong looked at him dead serious as he stared stripping to wear the Stealthsuit armour. "Might be. Although I'm more worried about finding a Wonder Woman, because that would be like icing on a cake for Happosai's sacrifice to Slaneesh."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_**Location: Somewhere in the Arizona desert, United States of America**_

In a darkly lit room, two men sat facing each other from opposite ends of a rectangle table. They had just finished viewing a video recording of Nabiki explaining what she knew of the Jedi to Kuno via a laptop. At the corner of the room, there was a large wooden box.

"And you expect me to take this recording between a Japanese college student and a demented Japanese aristocrat to be proof of aliens currently on Earth?" the taller of the two asked. He was the spitting image of a Man In Black; even in the dark room he still wore sunglasses and a black business suit.

"That and along with these picture and videos," the other figure was cloaked and hooded. "Please slip in the CD marked _Jedi Captains_."

The MIB reached into the plastic bag given to him and extracted the CD. He inserted it into the laptop and played it. It showed various screenshots of the Jedi Captains except for Lord Wong fighting during the attack on Nerima. In all the video footages, the Jedi Captains used their powers to defeat the Nerima invaders. Hitsugaya at one point broke the necks of several gang members with the Force, Cypher displayed his awesome marksmanship with his Bolter pistols, Jaina was a graceful whirlwind of descrution with her lightsaber, Neji using the shadows to his advantage to dispatch his attackers, and Ranma healing the Nerima students in less than a minute.

Lastly, it showed the Jedi Lord summoning a bolt of lightning to strike down Pantyhose Taro.

When the video ended, the MIB asked the cloaked man, "What is the purpose of showing these to the Bureau? If anything, these aliens seem benevolent, the only thing they've done is to disrupt your little murder spree."

"Yes, they certainly seem to be heroes who want to make the world a better place. Now I ask you this, have you noticed any disruptions in your intelligence network yet?"

The MIB did not answer.

"I thought so. It means that they're trying to find my organisation. And to do so, they're going to sniff our every nook and cranny of our world. Which means sooner or later, they will discover your existence. And I must say, some of your activities even put me to shame," the cloaked figure shook his head. "Dear dear, you're little Bureau has done a lot of good hasn't it? Assassinating presidents, including your own country, fuelling drug wars, shipping illegal immigrants for slave labour, deals with the Chinese Tongs, Italian and Russian mafias, ooh and this is the best part: hoarding alien technology."

"You dare to say these in my presence in my own base? You have a lot of guts for a half breed, Mr. Herb," the MIB quietly said. "My Bureau is perfectly suited to deal with these aliens without you needing to warn me."

"Are you sure, Agent Rudolph Wallace Smith?"

For the first time, the MIB showed emotion, standing up and glaring at Herb angrily. "How the hell do you know my name? That's it, you are not leaving here alive. And trust me, we will keep you alive until we extract every trace of your DNA and experiment on you like a guinea pig."

Herb also stood up and threw back his cloak. Surprisingly, he was unarmed and unarmoured, dressed in a Chinese dressing known as the Hanfu. "Be a gentlemen Agent Smith. For all you Bureau's formidable history black operations and intelligence network, I really doubt you could even stand up to any regular army divisions let alone the Dragon-Prince of the noble Musk dynasty."

Agent Smith snapped, "Whatever you want, you won't get it from us. If you think we're going to fight these aliens for you, forget it. They can wipe the rest of the world clean so long as our Bureau continues to exist."

"Frankly, I don't think they'll stop at exterminating my organisation. Sooner or later they're going to look at you. And when they do, you will find yourself ill-prepared to face their wrath. Trust me, I know first hand what those Jedi Captains can do to you if they so choose. Do you want to take the chance of being overlooked? Or would you rather take action now and make sure not only to exterminate them, but to capture their secrets as well?" Herb asked.

The agent looked at Herb for a long time and in the end, sat down, which Herb followed suit.

"OK Herb, I'll play your game for now. What do you want from the Bureau, and more importantly what the Bureau is getting out of this deal."

Herb smiled. "For starters, you can keep their technology. That's your main area of expertise anyway. We're only interested in their prisoners. Also, we possess a means for your organisation to disappear from the face of the Earth, beyond even the eyes of these Jedi. This way we can continue our activities without their interference or detection. If you don't believe me words, believe your intelligence network which states that the Musk country and population has completely disappeared in China four days ago."

This time, Agent Smith looked impressed and interested. "Yes, now that's a mystery the Bureau don't understand, and WE are the masters of the world's mysteries. Care to tell how you did it?"

"All in good time Agent Smith. For the moment, the issue of trust will be borne by my organisation. The information in the rest of the envelope includes the Jedi movements my organisation has detected so far. We dare not go closer to provoke them into action but I can surmise that there are less than fifty Jedi in Japan and China currently. We've also managed to retrieve the strange bullet shells used by the Jedi we've identified as Cypher for your analysis."

"That's still not much of a downpayment. My leaders will want something more valuable than just tips and information."

Herb's smiled widened. "Of course Agent Smith." And with that, Herb reached into his cloak and extracted a metal cylinder. The agent's eyes widened as he recognised what it was and looked at Herb in disbelief. Herb then pressed a button somewhere on the cylinder and a one meter long blade of yellow energy appeared at one end. He then used it to slice a door shaped hole in the wall. With a blast of chi from his fingers, he made a new door.

"My god, you actually have one of their weapons? But how?" the Agent could only ask.

"A magician does not reveal his secrets Mr. Smith, nor a martial artist his techniques. This will be the first of my gifts to your organisation. I will also leave one more gift specifically for you Agent Smith, and I pray that you will use them well."

Agent Smith's blood went cold but at the same time, he was flushed with expectation, already surmising what was in the mysterious crate.

Herb pointed a finger at the crate and it promptly fell apart, revealing twin girls which had been packed inside. They were naked, gagged with duct tape and blindfolded, arms tied behind their backs in elbow bondage and their feet were also bound together. Their collars were joined together by a chain. They looked very young and bore Chinese features. Both were beautiful and appeared to be just blooming into woman hood judging by their small breasts. The sounds of muffled screams promptly started as the two struggled to free themselves from their bonds.

The MIB made no hiding of his excitement this time. He walked over there and roughly lifted the chain up, forcing the two girls to stand to their feet. Their screams only excited him as he roughly shoved his finger into their private parts. "Virgins," he whispered.

"Do not worry yourself with their identities. They are your property now courtesy of our organisation. I would refrain from using them now though. Show them to your masters and tell them they are but a taste of what we can procure. And I assure you, all of our stocks are as young and fresh as these two beauties."

The Agent dropped the chain collar and the two girls fell to the floor, unable to balance themselves and shaking with fear. He looked at Herb.

"So what say you?" Herb asked, holding out his hand to Smith.

Agent Smith looked at the two way mirror on the other side of the room. From the other side, five other MIBs sat observing the proceedings. Through his special sunglasses, he could see through the two way mirror to the other side where his leaders were located. The leaders looked at each other without uttering a word. Then as one, they looked at Agent Smith and nodded. Agent Smith then smiled like a maniac and took Herb's hand.

"Let's do business."

To be continued

**Author's Notes**

_Wears full plate armour and hides behind a phalanx of 300 armoured Jedi Guards with large round Admantium shields as one million angry women charges at him. The phalanx stands their guard and protects me as the one million women batter at their shields._

_PLEASE, REMEMBER WHAT I PROMISED! HAPPY ENDING!_


End file.
